Why Did It Have to Be Us?
by Marethyu-in-Tartarus
Summary: This is basically a really cliche story about the Gods reading about what happens to Percy and Annabeth down in Tartarus along with the Seven, Thalia, Grover, and Nico.
1. The Truth Come Out

_**Disclaimer: I don't own anything, Rick Riordan Does.**_

 _ **AN: Hi. So, this is my first story on FanFiction, and if you guys have any suggestions let me know. Now, on with the story:**_

The Moirai had finally decided that it was time. Time for the gods to learn the truth about what had happened to the most powerful demigods of the age. Their story was one that needed to be told, for it was a necessity that the two greatest rivals in the history of the world learned to work together. And so, the fates gathered the knowledge into a book, gathered the gods required, and the demigods and sent them all to a newly finished Olympus.

* * *

Percy Jackson and Annabeth Chase were trying to have a picnic date at the beach, trying to have some kind of a sense of normality after the war, but they were getting tired of the constant stares they kept receiving by the other campers. They just wanted some quiet alone time, but of course, the Aphrodite cabin had to ruin that by not so stealthily stalking them and _subtly_ taking bets on what would happen between them.

"Hey Wise Girl," Percy began, "you wanna just head back and see what the others are up to?" He was getting fed up with the almost shouting match that was taking place due to the bets.

"Sure, Seaweed Brain." They both quietly slipped away from the other campers and started walking towards the big house, when suddenly they couldn't see the cabins and the strawberry fields anymore and all they could see was a massive throne room, one that Annabeth quickly recognized. It took Percy another second before it processed that they weren't at Camp Half-Blood anymore, but were on Olympus, inside of the throne room of the gods.

At the same moment, eight other people also just appeared next to Percy and Annabeth. When they started to look around to figure out what happened they noticed each other and the fact that all the major gods were starting to appear in their thrones one by one.

First was Zeus and Hera, fighting over some new affair of his, then came Hades surprisingly enough, radiating sunshine and daisies, you know, like he does. Once most of the gods were present, Zeus began the meeting. "Let's begin! This meeting is being held because we need to discuss what do with Apollo... HOW DID YOU CHILDREN GET IN HERE!"

"You, uh, you didn't summon us?" Annabeth said when everybody else just stood there stunned.

Zeus' answer was interrupted by the late arrival of Hermes and Apollo. "Yeah and then that's all I remember before I woke up to you slapping me in the face." Apollo was saying but then stopped abruptly, when somebody cleared their throat.

"Hey guys, look who I found on my way back here, can you believe he was just passed out in the woods somewhere?" Hermes said looking really proud of himself for finding Apollo.

"Forget that for now, we have more important things that seem to have appeared." Zeus said, looking pointedly toward the teenagers. "Why don't you all introduce yourselves, now."

"Um, guys, we just literally killed Mother Earth with you guys, like, last month." Percy pointed out.

"You mean _you_ were the ones that helped us out with the giants?" Zeus said skeptically.

"YES!" Everybody said in unison.

"Well, you still need to introduce yourselves again." Zeus said stubbornly, even though everyone knew that he knew who they were.

"Fine, I'll begin, you absolute child. I'm Percy Jackson, Son of Poseidon." The boy with green eyes and midnight black hair said.

"I'm Annabeth Chase, Daughter of Athena, Architect of Olympus." The grey-eyed blonde girl said, a bit pridefully.

"I'm Frank, Frank Zhang, I'm, uh, a Son of Mars." A stocky guy with a buzz-cut said, awkwardly.

"I'm Hazel Levesque, Daughter of Pluto." A small girl with golden eyes said shyly.

"I'm Jason Grace, Son of Jupiter." A tall boy with close-cropped golden hair and blue eyes said.

"I'm Piper Mclean, Daughter of Aphrodite." Said a beautiful girl with kaleidoscope eyes.

"My name is Leo Valdez, I'm a Son of Hephaestus, but I don't think you're really ready for the awesomeness that is me." A latino boy with elfish features said cheekily.

"Hi, I'm Grover Underwood, I'm a Lord of the Wild and I'm a Satyr." A red headed goat-man said.

"I'm Nico Di Angelo, Son of Hades." Said a pale boy with eyes like obsidian.

"And, I'm Thalia, Daughter of Zeus and Lieutenant to Lady Artemis and her Hunt." Said a girl with spiky black hair and strikingly blue eyes.

The moment Thalia had stopped speaking, a book appeared in Hestia's lap by the Hearth and a note showed up in Annabeth's hands. The note read:

"We, the Fates, have decided that everyone in this room has to hear the story of the two demigods who have traipsed through Tartarus and lived. Time has been frozen in this place so that people don't realize that you are gone and you cannot leave until the book has been finished."

"So, I guess that we're stuck here then." Percy stated obviously. "Could we get some couches or something, cause this sounds like it's going to take a while."

Once the demigods were all seated comfortably on a long L-shaped sofa, Zeus announced that they would start reading. "Hestia, could you begin please?" he asked his older sister.

"Sure Zeus," She said, _**"Chapter 1…"**_


	2. The Fall

_**Disclaimer: I don't own anything, Rick Riordan Does.**_

 _ **HesprideNightshade:**_ _ **Thanks for the review, and I'm sorry it wasn't clear in the last chapter, but since the books only have Percy and Annabeth's views on Tartarus and we don't get to see it how Nico saw it, I was just following that. I hope that explains why I said two instead of three.**_

 _ **Now on with the story:**_

* * *

When Hestia began speaking, everybody shut up. That's just the way it was with her.

" _ **Chapter 1, Annabeth."**_ She began, _**"Nine Days. As she fell, Annabeth thought about Hesiod, the old Greek poet who'd speculated it would take nine days to fall from earth to Tartarus."**_

"Really, so we're just going to jump right in, no introductions, nothing." Percy said flatly.

"I am so done with you right now, Seaweed Brain, that was such a terrible pun." Annabeth facepalmed.

" _ **She hoped Hesiod was wrong. She'd lost track of how long she and Percy had been falling-hours? A day? It felt like an eternity. They'd been holding hands ever since they dropped into the chasm. Now Percy pulled her close, hugging her tight as they tumbled through absolute darkness."**_

Everybody was paying so close attention to the book, that it seemed like they thought that Percy and Annabeth were still there right now.

" _ **Wind whistled in Annabeth's ears. The air grew hotter and damper, as if they were plummeting into the throat of a massive dragon. Her recently broken ankle throbbed, though she couldn't tell if it was still wrapped in spiderwebs. That cursed monster Arachne."**_

Immediately, Athena shivered, but surprisingly Annabeth didn't. When she spoke it was quiet and hollow, her expression blank, "I've seen worse." Nobody questioned her.

" _ **Despite having been trapped in her own webbing, smashed by a car, and plunged into Tartarus, the spider lady had gotter her revenge. Somehow her silk had entangled Annabeth's leg and dragged her over the side of the pit, with Percy in tow."**_

There was pin drop silence. It was only broken by Annabeth whispering to Percy, "I'm still sorry for dragging you down there."

"Don't blame yourself for that Wise Girl, I would do it again in a heartbeat, and anyways, you didn't drag me, I went willingly." Percy replied, forgetting that everybody could still hear him over the silence.

Needless to say, the intense moment was broken by Aphrodite, who had almost barely been able to keep her squealing to a minimum.

" _ **Annabeth couldn't imagine that Arachne was still alive, somewhere below them in the darkness. She didn't want to meet that monster again when they reached the bottom. On the bright side, assuming there**_ **was** _ **a bottom, Annabeth and Percy would probably be flattened on impact, so giant spiders were the least of their worries."**_

"Well, isn't that just the most optimistic thing, you've heard all century." Apollo chirped.

" _ **She wrapped her arms around Percy and tried not to sob."**_

Many people around the room had to hold back sobs themselves.

" _ **She'd never expected her life to be easy. Most demigods died young at the hands of terrible monsters. That was the way it had been since ancient times. The Greeks**_ **invented** _ **tragedy. They knew the greatest heroes didn't get happy endings. Still, this wasn't**_ **fair.** _ **She'd gone through so much to retrieve that statue of Athena. Just when she'd succeeded, when things had been looking up and she'd been reunited with Percy, they had plunged to their deaths."**_

" _ **Even the gods couldn't devise a fate so twisted. But Gaea wasn't like other gods. The Earth Mother was older, more vicious, more bloodthirsty. Annabeth could imagine her laughing as they fell into the depths."**_

" _ **Annabeth pressed her lips to Percy's ear. "I love you." She wasn't sure he could hear her-but if they were going to die she wanted those to be her last words."**_

Aphrodite promptly burst into tears, mumbling something about how she told everyone that their love story would be the best and how it would be tragic. Athena and Poseidon had paled considerably and even Ares' permanent scowl turned to a more neutral expression. "I love you too, Wise Girl, as long as we're together." Percy said looking over at her, smiling.

Which just caused another round of tears for Aphrodite who was now saying something about OTPs and evil troll uncles. "Let's continue, before any more time is wasted." Zeus boomed, trying to keep up a facade, but only Percy could see that the story was starting to get to him too and he just wanted to hear more of it.

" _ **She tried desperately to think of a plan to save them. She was a daughter of Athena. She'd proven herself in the tunnels under Rome, beaten a whole series of challenges with only her wits. But she couldn't think of any way to reverse or even slow their fall. Neither of them had the power to fly-not like Jason, who could control wind, or Frank, who could turn into a winged animal."**_

"He also does crazy dolphin very well, even though he is a bit slow on delivery." Leo blurted out. Most people didn't find it funny or even understood it, but they needed to find a reason to laugh after all the tenseness. So, they laughed almost hysterically for the next few minutes.

Once Hestia had calmed down and the laughs were limited to mild chuckles, she began reading again, _**"If they reached the bottom at terminal velocity...well, she knew enough science to know it would be**_ **terminal.** _ **"**_

That immediately sobered everyone up again. _**"She was seriously wondering whether they could fashion a parachute out of their shirts-**_ **that's** _ **how desperate she was-when something about their surroundings changed. The darkness took on a gray-red tinge. She realized she could see Percy's hair as she hugged him. The whistling in her ears turned into more of a roar. The air became intolerably hot, permeated with a smell like rotten eggs."**_

"Oh, good, they're reaching the bottom." Athena and Poseidon said immensely relieved. At the same time Thalia said, "Oh no, what's waiting for them at the bottom?" Thankfully the rivals didn't hear her.

" _ **Suddenly, the chute they'd been falling through opened into a vast cavern. Maybe half a mile below them, Annabeth could see the bottom. For a moment she was too stunned to think properly. The entire island of Manhattan could have fit inside this cavern-and she couldn't even see its full extent. Red clouds hung in the air like vaporized blood. The landscape-at least what she could see of it-was rocky black plains, punctuated by jagged mountains and fiery chasms. To Annabeth's left, the ground dropped off in a series of cliffs, like colossal steps leading deeper into the abyss."**_

"Wait, hold on, you guys saw stone as the ground down there?" Nico interrupted, "I saw-"

"Don't finish your sentence Nico," Hades warned, "there are somethings that only descendants of the Underworld can fathom."

Hermes started shocked, "Are you telling us that that description we just received isn't what the place actually looks like? How much worse can it get?"

Hestia cleared her throat loudly, "If I may please continue…"

Everybody was listening once more, causing Hestia to give a small smile. "Thank you."

" _ **The stench of sulfur made it hard to concentrate, but she focused on the ground directly below them and saw a ribbon of glittering black liquid- a**_ **river.**

" _ **Percy!" she yelled in his ear. "Water!"**_

" _ **She gestured frantically. Percy's face was hard to read in the dim red light. He looked shell-shocked and terrified, but he nodded as if he understood. Percy could control water-assuming that**_ **was** _ **water below them. He might be able to cushion their fall somehow."**_

 _ **Of course Annabeth had heard horrible stories about the rivers of the Underworld. They could take away your memories, or burn your body and soul to ashes. But she decided not to think about that. This was their only chance. The river hurtled toward them. At the last second, Percy yelled defiantly. The water erupted in a massive geyser and swallowed them whole."**_

"What did you just do to Percy!" Poseidon yelled frantically at the book. "Dad, I'm right here, I'm okay, I made it out." Percy soothed his father.

Instantly, the Sea God calmed down and told Hestia to continue reading.

"Poseidon, that was the end of the chapter." she said gently.

After a few minutes of stunned silence, Apollo said, "Well, on that happy note, let's go have some lunch."

* * *

 _ **AN: Welp, that seems like the perfect place to end that chapter, so, If you have any suggestions for me, let me know.**_


	3. The Rivers

_**Disclaimer: I don't own anything, Rick Riordan does.**_

* * *

Once everybody had returned after eating Hestia's amazing cooking, Poseidon picked up the book and quickly got everybody to sit down.

"Dad, please don't keep reading." Percy said. "I know that this hurts and I'm sorry, but I think I speak for Athena as well when I say this, but I need to know what happened to you guys down there."

Percy understood that, and Annabeth could tell that Athena did care about what happened to her, but she also wanted to know what Tartarus was like, which kind of made sense, you know, Athena being the Goddess of knowledge and all.

" _ **The impact didn't kill her, but the cold nearly did. Freezing water shocked the air right out of her lungs. Her limbs turned rigid, and she lost her grip on Percy. She began to sink. Strange wailing sounds filled her ears-millions of heartbroken voices, as if the river were made of distilled sadness. The voices were worse than the cold. They weighed her down and made her numb."**_

"Which one of the rivers was that?" Jason asked. "That place sounds terrible."

"Trust me, bro, you weren't there, it was worse in person." Percy told him. Annabeth just rolled her eyes at their bromance.

" **What's the point of struggling?** _ **They told her.**_ **You're dead anyway. You'll never leave this place.** _ **She could sink to the bottom and drown, let the river carry her body away. That would be easier. She could just close her eyes…"**_

Everybody was worried about what was happening with one of the strongest demigods they had ever met.

" _ **Percy gripped her hand and jolted her back to reality. She couldn't see him in the murky water, but suddenly she didn't want to die. Together they kicked upward and broke the surface."**_

"Aww, you two are just too adorable," Aphrodite said. "I've never met anybody with a bond as strong as yours."

" _ **Annabeth gasped, grateful for the air, no matter how sulfurous. The water swirled around them, and she realized Percy was creating a whirlpool to buoy them up. Though she couldn't make out their surroundings, she knew this was a river. Rivers had shores."**_

" _ **Land," She croaked. "Go sideways." Percy looked near dead with exhaustion. Usually water reinvigorated him, but not**_ **this** _ **water. Controlling it must have taken every bit of his strength. The whirlpool began to dissipate. Annabeth hooked one arm around his waist and struggled across the current. The river worked against her: thousands of weeping voices whispering in her ears, getting inside her brain.**_ **Life is despair,** _ **they said.**_ **Everything is pointless, and then you die."**

"Wow, uh, that sounds like a fun river." Leo said to himself, but everybody still heard him.

" _ **Pointless," Percy murmured. His teeth chattered from the cold. He stopped swimming and began to sink."**_

" _ **Percy!" she shrieked. "The river is messing with your mind. It's the Cocytus- the River of Lamentation. It's made of pure misery!"**_

" _ **Misery," he agreed."**_

Everybody was scared of what the river was doing to one of the most optimistic people they had ever met. If the river was making Percy think that life is pointless, then how could they have made it out?

Poseidon kept looking up worriedly at Percy, but he went back to reading. _**"Fight it!"**_

"Dad, we're right here and I'm okay, just try not to forget that." Percy reassured his father. "I know that, that's what it says in the book." Poseidon replied.

"Oh."

" _ **She kicked and struggled, trying to keep both of them afloat. Another cosmic joke for Gaea to laugh at:**_ **Annabeth dies trying to keep her boyfriend, the son of Poseidon, from drowning."**

" _ **Not going to happen, you hag, Annabeth thought.'**_

Poseidon could barely finish getting the sentence out because he was laughing to hard and once everybody had processed the fact that that was what Annabeth said, everybody was dying, Percy was laughing the hardest.

When everybody calmed down, he began reading again, _**"She hugged Percy tighter and kissed him. "Tell me about New Rome," she demanded. "What were your plans for us?"**_

"What plans? You had plans for the two of you?" Piper said looking over at Percy.

Percy just sat there slowly getting redder and redder.

" _ **New Rome… For us…"**_

" _ **Yeah, Seaweed Brain. You said we could have a future there! Tell Me!" Annabeth had never wanted to leave Camp Half-Blood. It was the only real home she'd ever known."**_

"Do you think that I _want_ to leave Camp? I don't, but if we want to have a quiet and safe life, then New Rome is the only place to do that." Percy explained to Annabeth. "I understand that now, and I want to have that life too." Annabeth told him.

" _ **But days ago, on the**_ **Argo II,** _ **Percy had told her that he imagined a future for the two of them among the Roman demigods. In their city of New Rome, veterans of the legion could settle down safely, go to college, get married, even have kids."**_

"That's what your plans were? Ohmigod, I thought that you guys couldn't get any cuter, then you go and pull something like this. I don't have any words anymore." Grover said.

"Man, you need to stop doing things like this, you're making the rest of us look bad." Leo said, staring directly at percy, impressed. Jason silently agreed.

Aphrodite was just staring at the two of them grinning like the Chesire cat. When Percy, finally noticed that she was staring, he thought that she looked like a toned down version of Annabeth.

" _ **Architecture," Percy murmured. The fog started to clear from his eyes. "Thought you'd like the houses, the parks. There's one street with all these cool fountains." Annabeth started making progress against the current. Her limbs felt like bags of wet sand, but Percy was helping her now. She could see the dark line of the shore about a stone's throw away."**_

" _ **College," she gasped. "Could we go there together?"**_

" _ **Y-yeah," he agreed, a little more confidently. "What would you study, Percy?"**_

" _ **Dunno," he admitted. "Marine science," she suggested. "Oceanography?"**_

" _ **Surfing?" he asked. She laughed, and the sound sent a shock wave through the water. The wailing faded to background noise."**_

"Can we talk about the fact that Percy just made Annabeth laugh in the middle of the River of Misery? Am I the only one that thought that wasn't possible?" Thalia said in wonder.

" _ **Annabeth wondered if anyone had ever laughed in Tartarus before- just a pure, simple laugh of pleasure. She doubted it."**_

"You would be right to doubt that, the only laughs down there are cruel and hateful." Hades said darkly. "I can hear them from my palace." he said defensively, when everybody looked at him, a bit scared.

" _ **She used the last of her strength to reach the riverbank. Her feet dug into the sandy bottom. She and Percy hauled themselves ashore, shivering and gasping, and collapsed on the dark sand."**_

" _ **Annabeth wanted to curl up next to Percy and go to sleep. She wanted to shut her eyes, hope all of this was just a bad dream, and wake up to find herself back on the**_ **Argo II,** _ **safe with her friends (well… as safe as a demigod can ever be).**_

 _ **But, no. They were really in Tartarus. At their feet, the River Cocytus roared past, a flood of liquid wretchedness. The sulfurous air stung Annabeth's lungs and prickled her skin. When she looked at her arms, she saw they were already covered with an angry rash. She tried to sit up and gasped in pain."**_

"What could it be now, didn't you get a chance to relax at all down there." Athena asked. "No." Annabeth, Percy, and Nico bluntly stated in unison.

"Well alrighty then."

" _ **The beach wasn't sand. They were sitting on a field of jagged black-glass chips, some of which were now embedded in Annabeth's palms."**_

" _ **So the air was acid. The water was misery. The ground was broken glass. Everything here was designed to hurt and kill. Annabeth took a rattling breath and wondered if the voices in the Cocytus were right. Maybe fighting for survival was pointless. They would be dead within the hour."**_

"Luckily, _that_ was the one time that Annabeth was wrong." Frank said.

" _ **Next to her, Percy coughed. "This place smells like my ex-stepfather." Annabeth managed a weak smile. She'd never met Smelly Gabe, but she'd heard enough stories. She loved Percy for trying to lift her spirits."**_

"I like how it took five years of everybody suffering through you two flirting with each other while denying that you were, for you to get together. And then, you're saying "I love you" twice within the same hour." Grover said.

" _ **If she'd fallen into Tartarus by herself, Annabeth thought, she would have been doomed. After all she'd been through beneath Rome, finding the Athena Parthenos, this was simply too much. She would've curled up and cried until she became another ghost, melting into the Cocytus. But she wasn't alone. She had Percy. And that meant she couldn't give up."**_

"Then, I'm glad that you were there for her Percy." Athena said looking gratefully at him.

" _ **She forced herself to take stock. Her foot was still wrapped in its makeshift cast of board and Bubble Wrap, still tangled in cobwebs. But when she moved it, it didn't hurt. The ambrosia she'd eaten in the tunnels under Rome must have finally mended her bones."**_

"Good idea, it's always best to take stock when you think that you're in a hopeless situation." Mars said, drawing on his military strategy knowledge.

" _ **Her backpack was gone-lost during the fall, or maybe washed away in the river. She hated losing Daedalus's laptop, with all its fantastic programs and data, but she had worse problems. Her celestial bronze dagger was missing-the weapon she'd carried since she was seven years old."**_

Thalia sucked in a sharp breath.

" _ **The realization almost broke her, but she couldn't let herself dwell on it. Time to grieve later. What else did they have? No food, no water… basically no supplies at all."**_

" _ **Yep. Off to a promising start."**_

"Gotta love the sarcasm." Nico said.

" _ **Annabeth glanced at Percy. He looked pretty bad."**_

"Thanks for that, Annabeth, it really means a lot." Percy said sarcastically tearful.

" _ **His dark hair was plastered across his forehead, his T-shirt ripped to shreds. His fingers were scraped raw from holding onto that ledge before they fell. Most worrisome of all, he was shivering and his lips were blue. "We should keep moving or we'll get hypothermia," Annabeth said. "Can you stand?"**_

" _ **He nodded. They both struggled to their feet. Annabeth put her arm around his waist, though she wasn't sure who was supporting whom. She scanned their surroundings. Above, she saw no sign of the tunnel they'd fallen down. She couldn't even see the cavern roof-just blood-colored clouds floating in the hazy gray air. It was like staring through a thin mix of tomato soup and cement."**_

"So, you're telling me that that place is big enough to have clouds." Hazel asked, becoming more and more scared.

"I hate to break it to you, Hazel, but yeah, it's probably even bigger than you're imagining right now." Annabeth replied.

" _ **The black-glass beach stretched inland about fifty yards, then dropped off the edge of a cliff. From where she stood, Annabeth couldn't see what was below, but the edge flickered with red light as if illuminated by huge fires. A distant memory tugged at her- something about Tartarus and fire."**_

"I hope you don't mean what I think you mean." Hephaestus said, looking up from his little project for the first time, he recognized the stories better than the others, being the god of fire.

"That's exactly what I mean, Lord Hephaestus." Annabeth said solemnly.

"What, what do you mean?" Hestia asked, but nobody answered her.

" _ **Before she could think too much about it, Percy inhaled sharply. "Look." He pointed downstream. A hundred feet away, a familiar-looking baby-blue Italian car crashed headfirst into the sand. It looked just like the Fiat that had smashed into Arachne and sent her plummeting into the pit."**_

"That gigantic spider was sent into the pit because of a sports car." Hermes said, almost laughing.

" _ **Annabeth hoped she was wrong, but how many Italian sports cars could there be in Tartarus? Part of her didn't want to go anywhere near it, but she had to find out. She gripped Percy's hand, and they stumbled toward the wreckage. One of the car's tires had come off and was floating in a backwater eddy of the Cocytus. The Fiat's windows had shattered, sending brighter glass like frosting across the dark beach. Under the crushed hood lay the tattered, glistening remains of a giant silk cocoon- the trap that Annabeth had tricked Arachne into weaving. It was unmistakably empty. Slash marks in the sand made a trail downriver… as if something heavy, with multiple legs, had scuttled into the darkness."**_

"Please don't tell me that she's still alive. Why do the monsters always survive?" Leo whined.

" _ **She's alive." Annabeth was so horrified, so outraged by the unfairness of it all, she had to suppress the urge to throw up. "It's Tartarus," Percy said. "Monster home court. Down here maybe they can't be killed."**_

"Thank you, Captain Edge Lord. Can we please hear from someone else right now?" Thalia voiced.

" _ **He gave Annabeth an embarrassed look, as if realizing he wasn't helping team morale. "Or maybe she's badly wounded, and she crawled away to die."**_

" _ **Let's go with that," Annabeth agreed.**_

"Let's definitely go with that, because the alternative is way too depressing right now." Hades stated.

" _ **Percy was still shivering Annabeth wasn't feeling any warmer either, despite the hot, sticky air. The glass cuts on her hands were still bleeding, which was unusual for her. Normally, she healed fast. Her breathing got more and more labored. "This place is killing us," she said. "I mean, it's literally going to kill us, unless…"**_ **Tartarus. Fire.** _ **That distant memory came into focus. She gazed inland toward the cliff, illuminated by flames from below. It was an absolutely crazy idea. But it might be their only chance."**_

" _ **Unless what?" Percy prompted. "You've got a brilliant plan, haven't you?"**_

"Doesn't she always have some kind of brilliant plan?" Frank questioned.

" _ **It's a plan," Annabeth murmured. "I don't know about brilliant. We need to find the River of Fire."**_

"Oh, the River of Fire, I thought it was going to be something dangerous." Artemis said, acting really relieved.

"I think, that it might be time for a break," Apollo said worriedly, "if the book has got little Arty to act like that."

The gods and demigods got up from their seats to go around the room and just talk to each other. At least, they were still able to joke around after everything that was revealed in the last few hours.

* * *

 _ **AN: I should probably tell you before we get too far into the story, the gods will sometimes switch between their greek and roman forms depending on the situation. Also, the events that happened with Leo at the end of BoO are the exact same, but sped up, so he still saved Calypso, but instead of disappearing for a year, he came back immediately and nobody's mad at him anymore. If you have any suggestions for me, let me know.**_


	4. Spicy, Yet Disgusting

_**Disclaimer: I don't own anything, Rick Riordan does.**_

 _ **AN:**_ _ **Deadly Huggles:**_ _ **I know, it's really weird how there aren't any other HoO ones out there, that was actually the reason that I started writing this one. I kept looking for one about their time in Tartarus, but they just didn't exist. I actually never found any for**_ **The Last Olympian,** _ **could you please recommend some to me? I do**_ **have** _ **the Dark Prophecy, I just need to find the time to sit down and read it.**_

 _ **MCATO068:**_ _ **The way that I see it, is that they're trying to appear like they're doing better in front of their friends and family, but then when they're alone, that's when they stop pretending.**_

 _ **AnnaUnicorn:**_ _ **I definitely agree with that, but also I think that it's helping them indirectly tell people about what happened to them down there, but also they are kind of trapped in the throne room until they're done with the book, so… there's that.**_

 _ **Anyways, onwards with the story...**_

* * *

"I think that I want to read next," Hephaestus said. "Here you go." Poseidon said, handing him the book.

" _ **When they reached the ledge, Annabeth was sure she'd signed their death warrants. The cliff dropped more than eighty feet. At the bottom stretched a nightmarish version of the Grand Canyon: a river of fire cutting a path through a jagged obsidian crevasse, the glowing red current casting horrible shadows across the cliff faces. Even from the top of the canyon, the heat was intense. The chill of the River Cocytus hadn't left Annabeth's bones, but now her face felt raw and sunburned. Every breath took more effort, as if her chest was filled with Styrofoam peanuts. The cuts on her hands bled more rather than less. Annabeth's foot, which had been almost healed, seemed to be reinjuring itself. She'd taken off her makeshift cast, but now she regretted it. Each step made her wince."**_

"What's happening?" Apollo said, looking distressed. "How are all of your wounds reopening?"

" _ **Assuming they could make it down to the fiery river, which she doubted, her plan seemed certifiably insane."**_

"Aren't most of our plans certifiably insane?" Frank deadpanned.

"Hey! You…. are very correct. Nevermind." Leo finished.

" _ **Uh…" Percy examined the cliff. He pointed to a tiny fissure running diagonally from the edge to the bottom. "We can try that ledge there. Might be able to climb down." He didn't say they'd be crazy to try. He managed to sound hopeful. Annabeth was grateful for that, but also worried that she was leading him to his doom."**_

"You know, you're not the only one, I'm pretty sure we all think that we're leading everybody to their doom at some point." Percy said.

"Our lives wouldn't be the same if there wasn't any risk." Hazel said.

"Yeah, we would be happier." Frank snorted. Needless to say, there was a awkward silence after that.

Sometime later, Hermes said, "All right, so I think it might be time to get back to reading now."

" _ **Of course if they stayed here, they would die anyway. Blisters had started to form on their arms from exposure to the Tartarus air. The whole environment was about as healthy as a nuclear blast zone. Percy went first."**_

" _ **The ledge was barely wide enough to allow a toehold. Their hands clawed for any crack in the glassy rock. Every time Annabeth put pressure on her bad foot, she wanted to yelp. She'd ripped off the sleeves of her T-shirt and used the cloth to wrap her bloody palms, but her fingers were still slippery and weak. A few steps below her, Percy grunted as he reached for another handhold. "So... what is this fire river called?"**_

"Yeah, what is this mysterious river that Hephaestus won't tell anybody about?" Ares asked.

"I would have told you, if you weren't so impatient and and waited a few more seconds." Hephaestus replied.

" _ **The Phlegethon," she said. "You should concentrate on going down."**_

"Oh."

" _ **The**_ **Phlegethon** _ **?" He shinnied along the ledge. They'd made it roughly a third of the way down the cliff-still high enough up to die if they fell. "Sounds like a marathon for hawking spitballs."**_

Leo was about to say that he totally agreed but he was interrupted by Thalia."Of course, that's what you thought of, Kelp Head." she laughed. Leo decided it was best not to say anything. It took a minute for the chuckles to die down.

" _ **Please don't make me laugh," she said. "Just trying to keep things light."**_

" _ **Thanks," she grunted, nearly missing the ledge with her bad foot. "I'll have a smile on my face as I plummet to my death." They kept going, one step at a time. Annabeth's eyes stung with sweat. Her arms trembled. But to her amazement, they finally made it to the bottom of the cliff."**_

" _ **When she reached the ground, she stumbled. Percy caught her. She was alarmed by how feverish his skin felt. Red boils had erupted on his face, so he looked like a smallpox victim."**_

"No, no, I made sure that Smallpox died out in the '80s. He's safe from that." Apollo said seriously.

" _ **Her own vision was blurry. Her throat felt blistered, and her stomach was clenched tighter than a fist. 'We have to hurry,' she thought. "Just to the river," she told Percy, trying to keep the panic out of her voice. "We can do this."**_

" _ **They staggered over slick glass ledges, around massive boulders, avoiding stalagmites that would've impaled them with any slip of the foot. Their tattered clothes steamed from the hat of the river, but they kept going until they crumpled to their knees at the banks of the Phlegethon. "We have to drink," Annabeth said. Percy swayed, his eyes half-closed. It took him a three count to respond. "Uh… drink fire?"**_

" _ **The Phlegethon flows from Hades's realm down into Tartarus." Annabeth could barely talk. Her throat was closing up from the heat and the acidic air. "The river is used to punish the wicked. But also… some legends call it the River of Healing."**_

"How can the river be used to heal, if it's meant to punish the wicked?" Grover asked himself.

" **Some** _ **legends?" Annabeth swallowed, trying to stay conscious. "The Phlegethon keeps the wicked in one piece so that they can endure the torments of the Fields of Punishment. I think… it might be the Underworld equivalent of ambrosia and nectar."**_

"Yeah, _equal_ , just like everything else between Olympus and the Underworld, they're the exact opposite of each other." Percy scoffed.

" _ **Percy winced as cinders sprayed from the river, curling around his face. "But it's fire. How can we-"**_

" _ **Like this." Annabeth thrust her hands into the river. Stupid? Yes, but she was convinced they had no choice. If they waited any longer, they would pass out and die. Better to try something foolish and hope it worked."**_

"I feel like that's Percy's life motto." Nico smirked.

" _ **On first contact, the fire wasn't painful. It felt cold, which probably meant it was**_ **so** _ **hot it was overloading Annabeth's nerves. Before she could change her mind, she cupped the fiery liquid in her palms and raised it to her mouth. She expected a taste like gasoline. It was**_ **so** _ **much worse. Once, at a restaurant back in San Francisco, she'd made the mistake of tasting a ghost chili pepper that came with a plate of Indian food. After barely nibbling it, she thought her respiratory system was going to implode. Drinking from the Phlegethon was like gulping down a ghost chili smoothie. Her sinuses filled with liquid flame. Her mouth felt like it was being deep-fried. Her eyes shed boiling tears, and every pore on her face popped. She collapsed, gagging and retching, her whole body shaking violently."**_

"She better be okay." Athena said, glaring at Hades.

"What are you looking at me for, niece?" Hades asked.

"Don't worry about it, dad. She's just looking for someone to blame." Nico answered.

" _ **Annabeth!" Percy grabbed her arms and just managed to stop her from rolling into the river. The convulsions passed. She took a ragged breath and managed to sit up. She felt horribly weak and nauseous, but her next breath came more easily. The blisters on her arms were starting to fade. "It worked," she croaked. "Percy, you've got to drink."**_

" _ **I…" His eyes rolled up in his head, and he slumped against her. Desperately, she cupped more fire in her palm. Ignoring the pain, she dripped the liquid into Percy's mouth. He didn't respond. She tried again, pouring a whole handful down his throat. This time he spluttered and coughed. Annabeth held him as he trembled, the magical fire coursing through his system. His fever disappeared. His boils faded. He managed to sit up and smack his lips. "Ugh," he said. "Spicy, yet disgusting." Annabeth laughed weakly. She was so relieved, she felt light-headed. "Yeah. That pretty much sums it up."**_

" _ **You saved us."**_

"What does that bring the count up to now?" Percy asked Annabeth.

"I stopped keeping track after that first quest." she said.

" _ **For now," she said. "The problem is, we're still in Tartarus." Percy blinked. He looked around as if just coming to terms with where they were. "Holy Hera. I never thought… well, I'm not sure**_ **what** _ **I thought. Maybe that Tartarus was empty space, a pit with no bottom. But this is a**_ **real** _ **place." Annabeth recalled the landscape she'd seen while they fell-a series of plateaus leading ever downward into the gloom. "We haven't seen all of it," she warned. "This could be just the first tiny part of the abyss, like the front steps."**_

" _ **The welcome mat," Percy muttered. They both gazed up at the blood-colored clouds swirling in the gray haze. No way would they have the strength to climb back up that cliff, even if they wanted to. Now there were only two choices: downriver or upriver, skirting the banks of the Phlegethon. "We'll find a way out," Percy said. "The Doors of Death." Annabeth shuddered. She remembered what Percy had said just before they fell into Tartarus. He'd made Nico Di Angelo promise to lead the**_ **Argo II** _ **to Epirus, to the mortal side of the Doors of Death."**_

"I want to thank you again, for keeping that promise, man." Percy said to Nico.

" **We'll see you there,** _ **Percy had said. That idea seemed even crazier than drinking fire. How could the two of them wander through Tartarus and find the Doors of Death? They'd barely been able to stumble a hundred yards in this poisonous place without dying. "We have to," Percy said. "Not just for us. For everybody we love. The Doors have to be closed on both sides, or the monsters will just keep coming through. Gaea's forces will overrun the world."**_

"Damn, that has got to be one of the worst unintentional guilt trips that I have ever heard." Jason said.

" _ **Annabeth knew he was right. Still… when she tried to imagine a plan that could succeed, the logistics overwhelmed her. They had no way of locating the Doors. They didn't know how much time it would take, or even if time flowed at the same speed in Tartarus. How could they possibly synchronize a meeting with their friends? And Nico had mentioned a legion of Gaea's strongest monsters guarding the Doors on the Tartarus side. Annabeth and Percy couldn't exactly launch a frontal assault."**_

"Well, you could, you just wouldn't make it five feet without dying." Hades informed them.

"Thanks for that, it's not like we _knew_ that, or anything." Annabeth said.

" _ **She decided not to mention any of that. They both knew the odds were bad. Besides, after swimming in the River Cocytus, Annabeth had heard enough whining and moaning to last a lifetime. She promised herself never to complain again. "Well." She took a deep breath, grateful at least that her lungs didn't hurt. "If we stay close to the river, we'll have a way to heal ourselves. If we go downstream-" It happened so fast, Annabeth would have been dead if she'd been on her own. Percy's eyes locked on something behind her. Annabeth spun as a massive dark shape hurtled down at her-a snarling, monstrous blob with spindly barbed legs and glinting eyes. She had time to think:**_ **Arachne.** _ **But she was frozen in terror, her senses smothered by the sickly sweet smell."**_

"Why does _she_ have to still be alive?" Athena asked.

" _ **Then she heard the familiar SHINK of Percy's ballpoint pen transforming into a sword. His blade swept over her head in a glowing bronze arc. A horrible wail echoed through the canyon. Annabeth stood there, stunned, as yellow dust-the remains of Arachne-rained around her like tree pollen. "You okay?" Percy scanned the cliffs and boulders, alert for more monsters, but nothing else appeared. The golden dust of the spider settled on the obsidian rocks. Annabeth stared at her boyfriend in amazement. Riptide's Celestial bronze blade glowed even brighter in the gloom of Tartarus. As it passed through the thick hot air, it made a defiant hiss like a riled snake.**_

" _ **She… She would've killed me," Annabeth stammered. Percy kicked the dust on the rocks, his expression grim and dissatisfied. "She died too easily, considering how much torture she put you through. She deserved worse."**_

Everyone except for Annabeth glanced warily at Percy, but he didn't notice them while he was staring at Annabeth.

"What?" she asked him.

"Nothing." he said, while not looking away.

" _ **Annabeth couldn't argue with that, but the hard edge in Percy's voice made her unsettled. She'd never seen someone get so angry or vengeful on her behalf. It almost made her glad Arachne had died quickly. "How did you move so fast?" Percy shrugged. "Gotta watch each other's backs, right?"**_

"How did you move that fast? Because you shouldn't have been able to move that quickly, when you were almost passed out a few seconds before." Poseidon said.

"I actually have no idea how I did that, I'm just happy that I did." Percy said.

" _ **Now, you were saying… downstream?" Annabeth nodded, still in a daze. The yellow dust dissipated on the rocky shore, turning to steam. At least now they knew monsters could be killed in Tartarus… though she had no idea how long Arachne would remain dead. Annabeth didn't plan on staying long enough to find out.**_

" _ **Yeah, downstream," she managed. "If the river comes from the upper levels of the Underworld, it should flow deeper into Tartarus-"**_

" _ **So it leads into more dangerous territory," Percy finished. "Which is probably where the Doors are. Lucky us."**_

"Why is the way out always closer to the danger?" Piper asked.

"I don't know about that, but I don't think I can handle more than one more chapter of the book for today." Aphrodite said.

"Yes, I believe it will be near bedtime when the next chapter is over, unfortunately, you all will have to sleep here. Whatever happened to the good old days, when mortals _weren't_ allowed on Olympus?" Hera said haughtily.

* * *

 _ **AN: So, I'm listening to Muse as I write this and the song Dead Inside begins, and seriously, right after the first line I immediately thought of Nico. Is that bad? Because, I feel kind of bad. The next chapter is going to be short, so I'll try to get it done before the weekend is over. Also, I've been meaning to say, THANKS, for reading the story.**_


	5. The Fearsome Kelli

_**Disclaimer: I don't own anything, Rick Riordan does.**_

 _ **AN:**_ _ **Deadly Huggles:**_ _ **That sucks about the Last Olympian fics, BUT I am now getting close to the end of Dark Prophecy. It is amazing so far, and to me Apollo was just a lot more likable, because he was kind of a major douche in the Hidden Oracle. Also, a lot of the things that people use in fanfics was disproved, like the thing with the Hunters and female romance.**_

 _ **KriKri:**_ _ **Thank you. I haven't actually heard of that series before, but I will definitely look it up.**_

 ** _Now, on with the story:_**

* * *

"Could I read next, please?" Hazel asked. "Sure." Hephaestus replied, while tossing the book to where she was sitting next to Frank.

Hazel cleared her throat before she began, _**"They'd only traveled a few hundred yards when Annabeth heard voices."**_

" _ **Annabeth plodded along, half in a stupor, trying to form a plan. Since she was a daughter of Athena, plans were supposed to be her specialty; but it was hard to strategize with her stomach growling and her throat baking. The fiery water of the Phlegethon may have healed her and given her strength, but it didn't do anything for her hunger or thirst. The river wasn't about making you feel good, Annabeth guessed. It just kept you going so you could experience more excruciating pain."**_

" _ **Her head started to droop with exhaustion. Then she heard them-female voices having some sort of argument-and she was instantly alert. She whispered, "Percy, down!" She pulled him behind the nearest boulder, wedging herself so close against the riverbank that her shoes almost touched the river's fire. On the other side, in the narrow path between the river and the cliffs, voices snarled, getting louder as they approached from upstream."**_

"Oh gods, _voices,_ as in, more than one?" Piper asked worriedly. "Of course, what else do you think our luck would allow?" Percy said resigned.

" _ **Annabeth tried to steady her breathing. The voices sounded vaguely human, but that meant nothing. She assumed anything in Tartarus was their enemy. She didn't know how the monsters could have failed to spot them already. Besides, monsters could**_ **smell** _ **demigods-especially powerful ones like Percy, son of Poseidon. Annabeth doubted that hiding behind a boulder would do any good when the monsters caught their scent."**_

" _ **Still, as the monsters got nearer, their voices didn't change in tone. Their uneven footsteps-**_ **scrap, clump, scrap, clump-** _ **didn't get any faster. "Soon?" one of them asked in a raspy voice, as if she'd been gargling in the Phlegethon. "Oh my gods!" said another voice. This one sounded much younger and much more human, like a teenaged mortal girl getting exasperated with her friends at the mall. For some reason, she sounded familiar to Annabeth. "You guys are**_ **totally** _ **annoying! I told you, it's like three**_ **days** _ **from here."**_

"Hazel, that was actually a flawless valley girl accent." Leo said surprised. "Thanks, I've been getting caught up on modern television, and I've gotten a little addicted to that program called _Desperate Housewives,_ so it wasn't that hard." Hazel replied.

" _ **Percy gripped Annabeth's wrist. He looked at her with alarm, as if he recognized the mall girl's voice too. There was a chorus of growling and grumbling. The creatures-maybe half a dozen, Annabeth guessed-had paused just on the other side of the boulder, but still they gave no indication that they'd caught the demigods' scent. Annabeth wondered if demigods didn't smell the same in Tartarus, or if the other scents here were so powerful, they masked a demigod's aura."**_

"THAT was what happened!" Percy exclaimed. Everybody was quiet for a moment before Annabeth asked, "What did you think was happening?"

"I thought that we were just extremely lucky." he said. "C'mon, was that really plausible, considering it was you two?" Hades asked. "Well, when you put it that way…"

" _ **I wonder," said a third voice, gravelly and ancient like the first, "if perhaps you do not know the way, young one."**_

"Ooh, I'm sensing some tension." Aphrodite sang.

" _ **Oh, shut your fang hole, Serephone," said the mall girl. "When's the last time**_ **you** _ **escaped to the mortal world? I was there a couple of years ago. I know the way! Besides,**_ **I** _ **understand what we're facing up there. You don't have a clue!"**_

" _ **The Earth Mother did not make you boss!" shrieked a fourth voice. More hissing, scuffling, and feral moans-like giant alley cats fighting. At last the one called Serephone yelled, "Enough!" The scuffling died down. "We will follow for now," Serephone said. "But if you do**_ **not** _ **lead us well, if we find you have**_ **lied** _ **about the summons of Gaea-"**_

" _ **I don't lie!" snapped the mall girl. "Believe me, I've got good reason to get into this battle. I have enemies to devour, and you'll feast on the blood of heroes. Just leave one special morsel for me-the one named Percy Jackson." Annabeth fought down a snarl of her own. She forgot about her fear. She wanted to jump over the boulder and slash the monsters to dust with her knife… except she didn't have it anymore."**_

"Damn, you two get really violent when the other is threatened." Thalia stated.

"I know, isn't it just _the_ most adorable thing you have ever seen!" Aphrodite squealed.

" _ **Believe me," said the mall girl. "Gaea has called us, and we're going to have**_ **so** _ **much fun. Before this war is over, mortals and demigods will tremble at the sound of name-Kelli!"**_

Everything was quiet for a second, then some mild chuckles were heard, it slowly got worse until it got to the point that nobody could breath anymore. "Ohmigods, I'm _so_ scared." Apollo said through his laughter. "I know, I'm absolutely terrified of-" Hermes couldn't even finish the sentence before a new round of laughter began.

Once everybody had calmed down, Hazel continued reading."

" _ **Annabeth almost yelped aloud. She glanced at Percy. Even in the red light of the Phlegethon, his face seemed waxy.**_ **Empousai,** _ **she mouthed.**_ **Vampires.** _ **Percy nodded grimly. She remembered Kelli. Two years ago, at Percy's freshman orientation, he and their friend Rachel Dare had been attacked by**_ **empousai** _ **disguised as cheerleaders. One of them had been Kelli. Later, the same**_ **empousa** _ **had attacked them in Daedalus's workshop. Annabeth had stabbed her in the back and sent her… here. To Tartarus."**_

" _ **The creatures shuffled off, their voices getting fainter. Annabeth crept to the edge of the boulder and risked a glimpse. Sure enough, five women staggered along on mismatched legs-mechanical bronze on the left, shaggy and cloven-hoofed on the right. Their hair was made of fire, their skin as white as bone. Most of them wore tattered Ancient Greek dresses, except for the one in the lead, Kelli, who wore a burned and torn blouse with a short pleated skirt… her cheerleader's outfit. Annabeth gritted her teeth. She had faced a lot of bad monsters over the years, but she hated**_ **empousai** _ **more than most. In addition to their nasty claws and fangs, they had a powerful ability to manipulate the Mist. They could change shape and charmspeak, tricking mortals into letting down their guard. Men were especially susceptible. The**_ **empousa's** _ **favorite tactic was to make a guy fall in love with her, then drink his blood and devour his flesh. Not a great first date."**_

"What do you mean? That sounds like an _amazing_ first date!" Leo said sarcastically cheerful.

"Oh, shut up, Leo" Annabeth said, barely glancing at him.

" _ **Kelli had almost killed Percy. She had manipulated Annabeth's oldest friend, Luke, urging him to commit darker and darker deeds in the name of Kronos. Annabeth**_ **really** _ **wished she still had her dagger. Percy rose. "They're heading for the Doors of Death," he murmured. "You know what that means?" Annabeth didn't want to think about it, but sadly, this squad of flesh-eating horror-show women might be the closest thing to good luck they were going to get in Tartarus. "Yeah," she said. "We need to follow them."**_

"Of course you do, let's just hope they don't see you guys." Jason said.

"Was that the end of the chapter, Hazel?" Hestia asked. "Yes, it was Lady Hestia."

"Then that means it's time for everybody to go and eat some dinner and then go to sleep, we can continue with this once we wake up, okay?" Hestia said.

After dinner, Annabeth led everybody to the guest hallways with empty rooms that she had built. "Good night, guys, we'll see you guys in the morning." Annabeth said before leading Percy to their room at the end of the hallway.

* * *

 _ **AN: Sorry about this chapter being late, it was because I was up for close to 35 hours straight over the weekend and I needed to catch up on sleep, after that I was just catching up on some other things. Also, I'm curious, do any of you guys listen to The Script?**_


	6. The Return

_**Disclaimer: I don't own anything, Rick Riordan does.**_

 _ **AN: First of all, I am so sorry that this was over a week late ( in case you guys didn't realize, I try to get at least one chapter done per week). The reason for that was that I had to work on a English project which was also the final, but school ends on Tuesday, so I will have a lot more time to write this. Hopefully, I'll be able to get another chapter done over the weekend, since this one was so short.**_

 _ **Deadly Huggles:**_ _ **Dude, i don't think I've gotten enough sleep ever since high school started. Also, I've been meaning to say that I actually kind of love your username. I did finish The Dark Prophecy, by the way.**_

 _ **KriKri:**_ _ **Thank you, and you totally don't sound like a douche, if you guys don't tell me that stuff, then I'll never know that there's a problem. The Script is a band that is amazing and you should totally listen to them. I stayed up for that long because I couldn't sleep on that friday and then I had a doctor's appointment in the morning and then my mom forced me to go to this party that afternoon and I didn't get home until like 11:00 pm, and then I still couldn't sleep. So I was pretty fucked.**_

 _ **Chanel Forsk:**_ _ **Thank you for that.**_

 _ **Mc-shizzle-luv:**_ _ **Thank you, and I kind of loved the Science & Faith album, #3, and the self-titled album. Oh, and also, No Sound Without Silence. So, basically all of their music.**_

* * *

In the morning, the demigods found out Olympus's definition of an alarm clock, which was just Apollo turning up the brightness of the sun and reciting limericks as loud as possible.

"Ugh, somebody make it stop." Nico groaned

"I can't believe that _this_ is who I wanted my father to be." Frank muttered to himself.

Eventually, everybody had woken up, eaten breakfast, and taken a seat in the throne room. Thalia decided to pick up the book next and decided to read next.

" _ **Percy had taken his girlfriend on some romantic walks before. This wasn't one of them."**_

"All right! So, that's where we're gonna start, reading my thoughts, okay." Percy said embarrassed.

"Did you think that the entire book was going to be in my point of view?" Annabeth asked, looking over at him.

"I mean, I was hoping for it, yeah."

" _ **They followed the River Phlegethon, stumbling over the glassy black terrain, jumping crevices, and hiding behind rocks whenever the vampire girls slowed in front of them. It was tricky to stay far enough back to avoid getting spotted but close enough to keep Kelli and her comrades in view through the dark hazy air. The heat from the river baked Percy's skin. Every breath was like inhaling sulfur-scented fiberglass. When they needed a drink, the best they could do was sip some refreshing liquid fire."**_

" _ **Yep. Percy definitely knew how to show a girl a good time."**_

"At least he never lost his sarcasm." Grover stated.

"I feel like this book would be a lot more depressing without both of their sarcasm." Jason said.

" _ **At least Annabeth's ankle seemed to have healed. She was hardly limping at all. Her various cuts and scrapes had faded. She'd tied her blond hair back with a strip of denim torn from her pants leg, and in the fiery light of the river, her gray eyes flickered. Despite being beat-up, sooty, and dressed like a homeless person, she looked great to Percy, So what if they were in Tartarus? So what if they stood a slim chance of surviving? He was so glad that they were together, he had the ridiculous urge to smile."**_

"How? How do you just be that sweet, Percy?" Piper demanded.

"Yeah, like did you practice how to be this smooth or does it just come natural as the prince of the sea?" Leo said reverently.

"Guys, I have no idea what you're talking about, I was just stating facts." Percy replied.

"This, this is right here is why you're my favorite couple." Aphrodite said, making intense eye contact with Percy and Annabeth at the same time.

" _ **Physically, Percy felt better too, though his clothes looked like he'd been through a hurricane of broken glass. He was thirsty, hungry, and scared out of his mind (though he wasn't going to tell Annabeth that),"**_

"I could still tell, Seaweed Brain."

" _ **but he'd shaken off the hopeless cold of the River Cocytus. And as nasty as the firewater tasted, it seemed to keep him going. Time was impossible to judge. They trudged along, following the river as it cut through the harsh landscape. Fortunately the**_ **empousai** _ **weren't exactly speed walkers. They shuffled on their mismatched bronze and donkey legs, hissing and fighting with each other, apparently in no hurry to reach the Doors of Death. Once, the demons sped up in excitement and swarmed something that looked like a beached carcass on the riverbank. Percy couldn't tell what it was-a fallen monster? An animal of some kind? The**_ **empousai** _ **attacked it with relish. When the demons moved on, Percy and Annabeth reached the spot and found nothing left except a few splintered bones and glistening stains drying in the heat of the river. Percy had no doubt the**_ **empousai** _ **would devour demigods with the same gusto."**_

"Mmmm, I've got to say, that sounds delicious, in a super barfy way." Leo gagged.

" _ **Come on." He led Annabeth gently away from the scene. "We don't want to lose them."**_

" _ **As they walked, Percy thought about the first time he'd fought the**_ **empousa** _ **Kelli at Goode High School's freshman orientation, when he and Rachel Elizabeth Dare got trapped in the band hall. At the time, it seemed like a hopeless situation. Now, he'd give anything to have a problem that simple. At least he'd been in the mortal world then. Here, there was nowhere to run. Wow. When he started looking back on the war with Kronos as the good old days-that was sad."**_

" _ **He kept hoping things would get better for Annabeth and him, but their lives just got more and more dangerous, as if the Three Fates were up there spinning their futures with barbed wire instead of thread just to see how much two demigods could tolerate."**_

"I have never heard a statement more accurate in my life." Hermes said.

" _ **After a few miles, the**_ **empousai** _ **disappeared over a ridge. When Percy and Annabeth caught up, they found themselves at the edge of another massive cliff. The River Phlegethon spilled over the side in jagged tiers of fiery waterfalls. The demon ladies were picking their way down the cliff, jumping from ledge to ledge like mountain goats. Percy's heart crept into his throat. Even if he and Annabeth reached the bottom of the cliff alive, they didn't have much to look forward to. The landscape below them was a bleak, ash-gray plain bristling with black trees, like insect hair. The ground was pocked with blisters. Every once in a while, a bubble would swell and burst, disgorging a monster like a larva from an egg. Suddenly Percy wasn't hungry anymore."**_

"Is it just me, or are you describing the place with a lot of human body parts?"

Percy and Annabeth unconsciously shuddered remembering what happened.

" _ **All the newly formed monsters were crawling and hobbling in the same direction-toward a bank of black fog that swallowed the horizon like a storm front. The Phlegethon flowed in the same direction until about halfway across the plain, where it met another river of black water-maybe the Cocytus? The two floods combined in a steaming, boiling cataract and flowed on as one toward the black fog."**_

" _ **The longer Percy looked into that storm of darkness, the less he wanted to go there. It could be hiding anything-an ocean, a bottomless pit, an army of monsters. But if the Doors of Death were in that direction, it was their only chance to get home. He peered over the edge of the cliff. "Wish we could fly," he muttered. Annabeth rubbed her arms. "Remember Luke's winged shoes? I wonder if they're still down here somewhere."**_

" _ **Percy remembered. Those shoes had been cursed to drag their wearer into Tartarus. They'd almost taken his best friend, Grover. "I'd settle for a hang glider."**_

"Oh my gods, I totally forgot about those deadly sneakers." Grover said.

"How do you forget something that almost killed you?"

"I've got a lot of stuff going on, okay?"

" _ **Maybe not a good idea." Annabeth pointed. Above them, dark winged shapes spiraled in and out of the bloodred clouds.**_

" _ **Furies?" Percy wondered.**_

" _ **Or some other kind of demon," Annabeth said. "Tartarus has thousands."**_

" _ **Including the kind that eats hang gliders," Percy guessed. "Okay, so we climb." He couldn't see the**_ **empousai** _ **below them anymore. They'd disappeared behind one of the ridges, but that didn't matter. It was clear where he and Annabeth needed to go. Like all the maggot monsters crawling over the plains of Tartarus, they should head toward the dark horizon. Percy was just brimming with enthusiasm for that."**_

"Looks like that was a shorter chapter. I guess we can read more chapters today, than we did yesterday." Thalia said.

* * *

 _ **AN: I've got to say, Aphrodite is just basically my inner fangirl coming out to play. Oh yeah, I asked about The Script in the last chapter because, I'm making music playlists for every character, couple, trio, safe haven, and book in the Riordanverse and I was wondering if you guys had any suggestions for bands. Wow, I think that's the longest author's note I've ever written. This chapter's going to end really awkwardly.**_


	7. Memories

_**Disclaimer: I don't own anything, Rick Riordan does.**_

 _ **AN: I'm going to just stop making excuses. I should've mentioned that I tend to procrastinate constantly. I'm hoping that I can get this book done by the end of July at the latest and since it's summer vacation now, I should have a lot more time to do that.**_

 _ **KriKri:**_ _ **Thanks, I think it did go pretty well. I'm sure you did great on your exams. How did the bet go?**_

* * *

"Let's just keep reading so we can get through this quickly." Annabeth said tiredly.

"Hand me the book, child. I will continue the reading." Hera commanded. Hazel quietly handed over the book.

" _ **As they started down the cliff, Percy concentrated on the challenges at hand: keeping his footing, avoiding rockslides that would alert the**_ **empousai** _ **to their presence, and of course making sure he and Annabeth didn't plummet to their deaths. About halfway down the precipice, Annabeth said, "Stop, okay? Just a quick break."**_

" _ **Her legs wobbled so badly, Percy cursed himself for not calling a rest earlier.**_ _ **They sat together on a ledge next to a roaring fiery waterfall. Percy put his arm around Annabeth, and she leaned against him, shaking from exhaustion. He wasn't much better. His stomach felt like it had shrunk to the size of a gumdrop. If they came across any more monster carcasses, he was afraid he might pull an**_ **empousai** _ **and try to devour it."**_

Everybody was feeling a little grossed out, when out of nowhere Leo just busted out laughing.

After a while Leo still hadn't stopped laughing and Piper was starting to question his sanity. "Leo, are you alright?" she asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine, but, like, when you say _devour_ do you mean you just open your mouth like a snake and swallow it whole. Because that's what I'm picturing and it. Is. Hilarious."

That mental picture caused most of the rest of them to chuckle too.

"ANYWAYS, on with the book." Hera interrupted.

" _ **At least he had Annabeth. They would find a way out of Tartarus. They**_ **had** _ **to. He didn't think much of fates and prophecies, but he did believe in one thing: Annabeth and he were supposed to be together. They hadn't survived so much just to get killed now."**_

"I told you, Percy, I was shipping you two from the start." Aphrodite reminded him.

"Wait, when did you talk to Aphrodite?" Annabeth asked confused.

"Umm, it was during that quest to save you from Atlas, Wise Girl."

"We'll talk about this in depth later, Seaweed Brain."

" _ **Things could be worse," Annabeth ventured."**_

" _ **Yeah?" Percy didn't see how, but he tried to sound upbeat. She snuggled against him. Her hair smelled of smoke, and if he closed his eyes, he could almost imagine they were at the campfire at Camp Half-Blood. "We could've fallen into the River Lethe," she said. "Lost all our memories."**_

" _ **Percy's skin crawled just thinking about it. He'd had enough trouble with amnesia for one lifetime. Only last month, Hera had erased his memories to put him among the Roman demigods. Percy had stumbled into Camp Jupiter with no idea who he was or where he came from."**_

And suddenly nobody could stop glaring at Hera. Hmm, I wonder why…

" _ **And a few years before that, he'd fought a Titan on the banks of the Lethe, near Hades's palace. He'd blasted the Titan with water from that river and completely wiped his memory clean. "Yeah, the Lethe," he muttered. "Not my favorite."**_

"The Lethe, too? So, that's what? The second Underworld river you can control?" Poseidon asked his son.

"I guess?"

" _ **What was the Titan's name?" Annabeth asked.**_

" _ **Uh…Iapetus. He said it meant the**_ **Impaler** _ **or something."**_

"Oh, he sounds like a swell dude." Hermes said semi-seriously.

" _ **No, the name you gave him after he lost his memory. Steve?"**_

" _ **Bob," Percy said. Annabeth managed a weak laugh. "Bob the Titan."**_

"I'm sorry, I think we're going to need to hear the story of what happened with this Titan." Jason said.

"We will tell you guys, just not yet for reasons you'll understand later on." Percy replied.

 _ **Percy's lips were so parched, it hurt to smile. He wondered what had happened to Iapetus after they'd left him in Hades's palace… if he was still content being Bob, friendly, happy, and clueless. Percy hoped so, but the Underworld seemed to bring out the worst in everyone-monsters, heroes, and gods. He gazed across the ashen plains. The other Titans were supposed to be here in Tartarus-maybe bound in chains, or roaming aimlessly, or hiding in some of those dark crevices. Percy and his allies had destroyed the worst Titan, Kronos, but even**_ **his** _ **remains might be down here somewhere-a billion angry Titan particles floating through the blood-colored clouds or lurking in that dark fog."**_

"Do each of his particles have tiny faces and are screaming in super high pitched voices." Nico asked.

"I… don't really know what to say to that." Thalia said.

" _ **Percy decided not to think about that. He kissed Annabeth's forehead. "We should keep moving. You want some more fire to drink?"**_

" _ **Ugh. I'll pass."**_

" _ **They struggled to their feet. The rest of the cliff looked impossible to descend-nothing more than a crosshatching of tiny ledges-but they kept climbing down. Percy's body went on autopilot. His fingers cramped. He felt blisters popping up on his ankles. He got shaky from hunger. He wondered if they would die of starvation, or if the fire-water would keep them going. He remembered the punishment of Tantalus, who'd been permanently stuck in a pool of water under a fruit tree but couldn't reach either food or drink. Jeez, Percy hadn't thought about Tantalus in years. That stupid guy had been paroled briefly to serve as director at Camp Half-Blood. Probably he was back in the Fields of Punishment. Percy had never felt sorry for the jerk before, but now he was starting to sympathize. He could imagine what it would be like, getting hungrier and hungrier for eternity but never being able to eat."**_

" **Keep climbing,** _ **he told himself."**_

" **Cheeseburgers,** _ **his stomach replied."**_

" **Shut up,** _ **he thought."**_

" **With fries,** _ **his stomach complained."**_

Needless to say, it took a while for everybody to stop laughing after that.

" _ **A billion years later, with a dozen new blisters on his feet, Percy reached the bottom. He helped Annabeth down, and they collapsed on the ground. Ahead of them stretched miles and miles of wasteland, bubbling with monstrous larvae and big insect-hair trees. To their right, the Phlegethon split into branches that etched the plain, widening into a delta of smoke and fire. To the north, along the main route of the river, the ground was riddled with cave entrances. Here and there, spires of rock jutted up like exclamation points. Under Percy's hand, the soil felt alarmingly warm and smooth. He tried to grab a handful, then realized that under a thin layer of dirt and debris, the ground was a single vast membrane… like skin."**_

"I'm really _not_ liking those descriptions." Frank said.

" _ **He almost threw up, but forced himself not to. There was nothing in his stomach but fire. He didn't mention it to Annabeth, but he started to feel like something was watching them-something vast and malevolent. He couldn't zero in on it, because the presence was all around them.**_ **Watching** _ **was the wrong word, too. That implied eyes, and this thing was simply aware of them. The ridges above them now looked less like steps and more like rows of massive teeth. The spires of rock looked like broken ribs. And if the ground was skin…"**_

"I'm beginning to sense a pattern. It's just a matter of time before that place comes alive." Athena theorized.

" _ **Percy forced those thoughts aside. This place was just freaking him out. That was all. Annabeth stood, wiping soot from her face. She gazed toward the darkness on the horizon. "We're going to be completely exposed, crossing this plain."**_

 _ **About a hundred yards ahead of them, a blister burst on the ground. A monster clawed its way out… a glistening telkhine with slick fur, a seal-like body, and stunted human limbs. It managed to crawl a few yards before something shot out of the nearest cave, so fast that Percy could only register a dark green reptilian head. The monster snatched the squealing telkhine in its jaws and dragged it into the darkness. Reborn in Tartarus for two seconds, only to be eaten."**_

"Wow, no wonder they're so, you know, _monstrous._ "

"Leo, that was a terrible pun."

" _ **Percy wondered if that telkhine would pop up some other place in Tartarus, and how long it would take to re-form. He swallowed down the sour taste of firewater. "Oh, yeah. This'll be fun."**_

" _ **Annabeth helped him to his feet. He took one last look at the cliffs, but there was no going back. He would've given a thousand golden drachmas to have Frank Zhang with them right now-good old Frank, who always seemed to show up when needed and could turn into an eagle or a dragon to fly them across this stupid wasteland."**_

Frank was touched that Percy thought that about him. "Thanks, man."

"Again, I'm just stating facts, dude."

" _ **They started walking, trying to avoid the cave entrances, sticking close to the bank of the river. They were just skirting one of the spires when a glint of movement caught Percy's eye-something darting between the rocks to their right. A monster following them? Or maybe it was just some random baddie, heading for the Doors of Death. Suddenly he remembered why they'd started following this route, and he froze in his tracks."**_

"Wait, why _did_ you start going that way?" Zeus asked.

"Well, if you waited two seconds, I could tell you why." Hera said.

" _ **The**_ **empousai."** _ **He grabbed Annabeth's arm. "Where are they?"**_

"Oh, shit, I completely forgot about them." Apollo said.

" _ **Annabeth scanned a three-sixty, her gray eyes bright with alarm. Maybe the demon ladies had been snapped up by that reptile in the cave. If the**_ **empousai** _ **were still ahead of them, they should've been visible somewhere on the plains. Unless they were hiding…"**_

" _ **Too late, Percy drew his sword. The**_ **empousai** _ **emerged from the rocks all around them-five of them forming a ring. A perfect trap. Kelli limped forward on her mismatched legs. Her fiery hair burned across her shoulders like a miniature Phlegethon waterfall. Her tattered cheerleader outfit was splattered with rusty-brown stains, and Percy was pretty sure they weren't ketchup. She fixed him with her glowing red eyes and bared her fangs. "Percy Jackson," she cooed. "How awesome! I don't even have to return to the mortal world to destroy you!"**_

"So, that was the end of the chapter, thank Us. Who's reading next?" Hera couldn't get away from the book fast enough.

* * *

 _ **AN: So, I think that I'm going to start recommending one percabeth fanfic to read at the end of most chapters like this one called**_ **Tangent _by NotAGuestAnymore, that is one of my all time favorites_** **.** _ **Just to give you guys an example of how bad my procrastination is: it took me 10 hours to write this chapter, when I could be finished in, like, an hour and a half. I'll hopefully see you guys soon in the next chapter.**_


	8. Ambushed

_**Disclaimer: I don't own anything, Rick Riordan does.**_

 _ **AN:**_

 _ **DeadlyHuggles:**_ _ **Thanks, and I am so happy that it's finally summer vacation and there's more time to just do everything.**_

 _ **KriKri:**_ _ **That sucks that you didn't have time to read, but at least you have time to read now, right? I remember having to study for my Latin final, I hated it. I love it when people stop acting "normal", so...**_

 _ **Guest:**_ _ **I am definitely going to keep making more. The Arai were one of my favorite parts in the book, so I can't wait to get there.**_

 _ **feliciasfandoms:**_ _ **I'm only doing the Tartarus chapters since there aren't really any others out there, and I'll probably do something like that for Calypso.**_

* * *

"I guess that I'll read next, little sister." Hades sighed.

"Here you go." Hera practically threw the book into his hands.

" _ **Percy recalled how dangerous Kelli had been the last time they'd fought in the Labyrinth. Despite those mismatched legs, she could move fast when she wanted to. She'd dodged his sword strikes and would have eaten his face if Annabeth hadn't stabbed her from behind. Now she had four friends with her."**_

" _ **And your friend**_ **Annabeth** _ **is with you!" Kelli hissed with laughter. "Oh, yeah, I totally remember her."**_

"Yeah, she is pretty hard to forget, isn't she?" Percy said, grinning towards her.

Aphrodite just smiled at them slyly.

" _ **Kelli touched her own sternum, where the tip of the knife had exited when Annabeth stabbed her in the back. "What's the matter, daughter of Athena? Don't have your weapon? Bummer. I'd use it to kill you."**_

" _ **Percy tried to think. He and Annabeth stood shoulder to shoulder as they had many times before, ready to fight. But neither of them was in good shape to battle. Annabeth was empty-handed. They were hopelessly outnumbered. There was nowhere to run. No help coming."**_

" _ **Briefly Percy considered calling for Mrs. O'Leary, his hellhound friend who could shadow-travel. Even if she heard him, could she make it into Tartarus? This was where monsters went when they died. Calling her here might kill her, or turn her back to her natural state as a fierce monster. No...he couldn't do that to his dog. So, no help. Fighting was a long shot."**_

"You were wise to not call the hound, it would have destroyed you." Hades said, looking up from the book lazily.

" _ **That left Annabeth's favorite tactics: trickery, talk delay."**_

" _ **So…" he started, "I guess you're wondering what we're doing in Tartarus." Kelli snickered. "Not really. I just want to kill you."**_

"Wow, rude." Piper scoffed.

" _ **That would've been it, but Annabeth chimed in. "Too bad," she said. "Because you have no idea what's going on in the mortal world." The other**_ **empousai** _ **circled, watching Kelli for a cue to attack; but the ex-cheerleader only snarled, crouching out of reach of Percy's sword. "We know enough," Kelli said. "Gaea has spoken."**_

" _ **You're heading toward a major defeat." Annabeth sounded so confident, even Percy was impressed. She glanced at the other**_ **empousai,** _ **one by one, then pointed accusingly at Kelli."**_

" _ **This one claims she's leading you to a victory. She's lying. The last time she was in the mortal world, Kelli was in charge of keeping my friend Luke Castellan faithful to Kronos. In the end, Luke rejected him. He gave his life to expel Kronos. The Titans lost because Kelli**_ **failed.** _ **Now Kelli wants to lead you to another disaster."**_

Hermes had tensed at the mention of Luke, before remembering his recent visit with May Castellan.

" _ **The other**_ **empousai** _ **muttered and shifted uneasily. "Enough!" Kelli's fingernails grew into long black talons. She glared at Annabeth as if imagining her sliced into small pieces. Percy was pretty sure Kelli had had a thing for Luke Castellan. Luke had that effect on girls-even donkey-legged vampires-and Percy wasn't sure bringing up his name was such a good idea.**_

"Did you have a better idea, Seaweed Brain?" Annabeth whispered quietly to Percy.

"Well, I mean we could have….no, I didn't have a better idea." he whispered back.

" _ **The girl lies," Kelli said. "So the Titans lost. Fine! That was part of the plan to wake Gaea! Now the Earth Mother and her giants will destroy the mortal world, and we will**_ **totally** _ **feast on demigods!"**_

"There's no way that the Titans losing was a part of her plan!" Thalia exclaimed.

"Right?" she asked a little more uncertainly, but no one had an answer for her.

" _ **The other vampires gnashed their teeth in a frenzy of excitement. Percy had been in the middle of a school of sharks when the water was full of blood. That wasn't nearly as scary as**_ **empousai** _ **ready to feed. "**_

"Okay, pause, when were you in the middle of a school of sharks, with water full of blood." Leo asked, incredulously.

"I was the one feeding them." Percy replied in a voice that made it seem like it was obvious.

"Of course! Why didn't I think of that? Because, you know, it's _totally_ normal for people to stay in the middle of sharks while their eating."

" _ **He prepared to attack, but how many could he dispatch before they overwhelmed him? It wouldn't be enough. "The demigods have united!" Annabeth yelled. "You'd better think twice before you attack us. Romans and Greeks will fight you together. You don't stand a chance!" The**_ **empousai** _ **backed up nervously, hissing, "**_ **Romani."** _ **Percy guessed they'd had experience with the Twelfth Legion before, and it hadn't worked out well for them. "Yeah, you bet**_ **Romani."** _ **Percy bared his forearm and showed them the brand he'd gotten at Camp Jupiter-the SPQR mark, with the trident of Neptune. "You mix Greek and Roman, and you know what you get? You get**_ **BAM!"** _ **He stomped his foot, and the**_ **empousai** _ **scrambled back. One fell off the boulder where she'd been perched. That made Percy feel good, but they recovered quickly and closed in again."**_

" _ **Bold talk," Kelli said, "for two demigods lost in Tartarus. Lower your sword, Percy Jackson, and I'll kill you quickly. Believe me, there are worse ways to die down here."**_

" _ **Wait!" Annabeth tried again. "Aren't**_ **empousai** _ **the servants of Hecate?" Kelli curled her lip. "So?"**_

" _ **So Hecate is on**_ **our** _ **side now," Annabeth said. "She has a cabin at Camp Half-Blood. Some of her demigod children are my friends. If you fight us, she'll be angry." Percy wanted to hug Annabeth, she was so brilliant. One of the other**_ **empousai** _ **growled. "Is this true, Kelli? Has our mistress made peace with Olympus?"**_

" _ **Shut up, Serephone!" Kelli screeched. "**_ **Gods,** _ **you're annoying!"**_

" _ **I will not cross the Dark Lady." Annabeth took the opening. "You'd all be better following Serephone. She's older and wiser."**_

"Nice kid, turn them against each other, not a bad idea." Ares said, impressed.

" _ **Yes!" Serephone shrieked. "Follow me!" Kelli struck so fast, Percy didn't have the chance to raise his sword. Fortunately, she didn't attack him. Kelli lashed out at Serephone. For half a second, the two demons were a blur of slashing claws and fangs. Then it was over. Kelli stood triumphant over a pile of dust. From her claws hung the tattered remains of Serephone's dress."**_

" _ **Any more issues?" Kelli snapped at her sisters. "Hecate is the goddess of the Mist! Her ways are mysterious. Who knows which side she truly favors? She is also the goddess of the crossroads, and she expects us to make our own choices. I choose the path that will bring us the most demigod blood! I choose Gaea!"**_

" _ **Her friends hissed in approval. Annabeth glanced at Percy, and he saw that she was out of ideas. She'd done what she could. She'd gotten Kelli to eliminate one of her own. Now there was nothing left but to fight."**_

"Well, that was fun while it lasted." Apollo remarked sarcastically.

" _ **For two years I churned in the void," Kelli said. "Do you know how completely**_ **annoying** _ **it is to be vaporized, Annabeth Chase? Slowly re-forming, fully conscious, in searing pain for months and years as your body re-grows, then finally breaking the crust of this hellish place and clawing your way back to daylight? All because some**_ **little girl** _ **stabbed you in the back?" Her baleful eyes held Annabeth's."**_

"That actually sounds kind of terrible, no wonder they hate us so much, we keep sending them back there." Hazel frowned.

" _ **I wonder what happens if a demigod is killed in Tartarus. I doubt it's ever happened before. Let's find out." Percy sprang, slashing Riptide in a huge arc. He cut one of the demons in half, but Kelli dodged and charged Annabeth. The other two**_ **empousai** _ **launched themselves at Percy. One grabbed his sword arm. Her friend jumped on his back. Percy tried to ignore them and staggered toward Annabeth, determined to go down defending her if he had to; but Annabeth was doing pretty well. She tumbled to one side, evading Kelli's claws, and came up with a rock in her hand, which she smacked into Kelli's nose. Kelli wailed. Annabeth scooped up gravel and flung it in the**_ **empousa's** _ **eyes. Meanwhile Percy thrashed from side to side, trying to throw off his**_ **empousa** _ **hitchhiker, but her claws sank deeper into his shoulders. The second**_ **empousa** _ **held his arm, preventing him from using Riptide. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Kelli lunge, raking her talons across Annabeth's arm. Annabeth screamed and fell. Percy stumbled in her direction. The vampire on his back sank her teeth into his neck. Searing pain coursed through his body. His knees buckled."**_

" **Stay on your feet,** _ **he told himself.**_ **You have to beat them.** _ **Then the other vampire bit his sword arm, and Riptide clattered to the ground. That was it. His luck had finally run out. Kelli loomed over Annabeth, savoring her moment of triumph. The other two**_ **empousai** _ **circled Percy, their mouths slavering, ready for another taste."**_

"This was when you guys pulled out some of those crazy powers we gave you, right?" Zeus said, though it sounded more like a statement.

" _ **Then a shadow fell across Percy. A deep war cry bellowed from somewhere above, echoing across the plains of Tartarus, and a Titan dropped onto the battlefield."**_

"Oh well, nevermind then."

"You know, that sounds like it was a, uh, fun time, but I think that this a perfect time to take a break," Jason said, shocked. "To, you know, process what just happened there."

"Yeah, that sounds like a great idea, plus, I'm starving." Percy agreed, right before his stomach growled.

* * *

 _ **AN: You guys should read "From Him" by MaydayParade8123, it's another one of my favorites. Also, I have the next chapter written already, so I'm all set for over the weekend. I'll see you guys later.**_


	9. Titan Ex Machina

_**Disclaimer: I don't own anything, Rick Riordan does.**_

 _ **AN: It is currently 11:53 pm on Sunday night. I just barely made it, this still counts as the weekend. You know what's crazy, I actually had two chapters in the same week.**_

 _ **KriKri:**_ _ **I love and hate when you forget things about the book, because it's like "how could I forget something about one of my favorite books," but also, you get to experience that part of the book for the first time again.**_

 _ **Dasha:**_ _ **Thanks and here's the next part**_

 _ **DeadlyHuggles:**_ _ **It is a GREAT story, I've read it at least 20 times.**_

 _ **AnnaUnicorn:**_ _ **By opposite, I meant that Ambrosia and Nectar tastes like the most comforting and amazing food you can think of, while the Phlegethon tastes like hellfire. I hope that makes sense, but you're right I definitely could have worded that better.**_

 _ **Sealure:**_ _ **Thank you!**_

* * *

"Ughh, Lady Hestia, that was delicious and amazing, that was amazcious." Percy moaned.

"Really Percy, _amazcious._ That's what you're gonna go with? _"_ Grover asked.

"Yes, _really._ I don't see what the problem here is."

"Well, amazcious isn't a word." Annabeth chimed in.

"Yes it is, I just made it up, besides, isn't that how all the other words in the english language are created, Wise Girl?"

"So, ANYWAYS, who's going to read next?" Artemis interrupted.

"I can go next." Nico volunteered after a short silence.

" _ **Percy thought he was hallucinating. It just wasn't possible that a huge, silvery figure could drop out of the sky and stop Kelli flat, trampling her into a mound of monster dust.**_ _**But that's exactly what happened. The Titan was ten feet tall, with wild silver Einstein hair, pure silver eyes, and muscular arms protruding from a ripped-up blue janitor's uniform. In his hand was a massive push broom. His name tag, incredibly, read**_ **BOB."**

"Wait, didn't you say that Bob was the name you gave to Iapetus after his dip in the Lethe?" Poseidon asked.

"Yep, that's our little impaler." Percy answered while smiling sadly.

Everybody except for Annabeth looked at him a little weird but nobody said anything.

" _ **Annabeth yelped and tried to crawl away, but the giant janitor wasn't interested in her. He turned to the two remaining**_ **empousai,** _ **who stood over Percy. One was foolish enough to attack. She lunged with the speed of a tiger, but she never stood a chance. A spearhead jutted from the end of Bob's broom. With a single deadly swipe, he cut her to dust. The last vampire tried to run. Bob threw his broom like a massive boomerang (was there such a thing as a broomerang?)."**_

"Does that...does that actually say broomerang?" Nico said squinting at the book.

"I mean, it's a legitimate question."

" _ **It sliced through the vampire and returned to Bob's hand. "SWEEP!" The Titan grinned with delight and did a victory dance. "Sweep, sweep, sweep!" Percy couldn't speak. He couldn't bring himself to believe that something good had actually happened. Annabeth looked just as shocked. "H-how….?" she stammered. "Percy called me!" the janitor said happily. "Yes, he did."**_

"Did I miss something, when did you call him?" Frank asked confused.

Nobody had an answer for him.

" _ **Annabeth crawled a little farther away. Her arm was bleeding badly. "Called you? He-wait. You're Bob?**_ **The** _ **Bob?" The janitor frowned when he noticed Annabeth's wounds. "Owie." Annabeth flinched as he knelt next to her. "It's okay," Percy said, still woozy with pain. "He's friendly." He remembered when he'd first met Bob. The Titan had healed a bad wound on Percy's shoulder just by touching it. Sure enough, the janitor tapped Annabeth's forearm and it mended instantly. Bob chuckled, pleased with himself, then bounded over to Percy and healed his bleeding neck and arm. The Titan's hands were surprisingly warm and gentle."**_

"That's a handy little trick, I mean, I like to think that I could do a little better. It's not like I'm the god of medicine or anything." Apollo humbly bragged.

" _ **All better!" Bob declared, his eerie silver eyes crinkling with pleasure. "I am Bob, Percy's friend!" "Uh...yeah," Percy managed. "Thanks for the help, Bob. It's**_ **really** _ **good to see you again."**_

" _ **Yes!" the janitor agreed. "Bob. That's me, Bob, Bob, Bob." He shuffled around, obviously pleased with his name. "I am helping. I heard my name. Upstairs in Hades's palace, nobody calls for Bob unless there is a mess. Bob, sweep up these bones. Bob, mop up these tortured souls. Bob, a zombie exploded in the dining room."**_

"Hades, were you planning on telling us that you employed a Titan as your janitor?" Zeus asked testily.

"No."

" _ **Annabeth gave Percy a puzzled look, but he had no explanation. "Then I heard my friend call!" The Titan beamed. "Percy said,**_ **Bob!"** _ **He grabbed Percy's arm and hoisted him to his feet. "That's awesome," Percy said. "Seriously. But how did you-"**_

" _ **Oh, time to talk later." Bob's expression turned serious. "We must go before they find you. They are coming. Yes, indeed."**_

" **They?"** _ **Annabeth asked. Percy scanned the horizon. He saw no approaching monsters-nothing but the stark gray wasteland. "Yes," Bob agreed. "But Bob knows a way. Come on, friends! We will have fun!"**_

"That's oddly comforting and terrifying at the same time." Grover said.

"Does anybody have any water, my throat's a little dry." Nico asked once he put the book down.

"Nico, you are literally in the middle of a room with 14 immortal, all-powerful beings, and their children, one of them being the actual god of the seas. Also, his son is in this room too. So, yes, we can get you some water." Annabeth sassed.

"A simple "yes" would have sufficed." he muttered under his breath.

* * *

 _ **AN: You know, I feel like I'm forgetting some characters, so who should I bring in for this? For this one, I think I'm gonna choose,**_ **52 Reasons Why** _ **by MaydayParade8123, it's a short valentine's one-shot and it's pretty good. I'll see you guys whenever the next chapter is.**_


	10. Overload of Weird

_**Disclaimer: I don't own anything, Rick Riordan does.**_

 _ **AN:**_

 _ **DeadlyHuggles:**_ _ **I don't remember the last time I went to sleep before 1 am. Also, thank you.**_

 _ **DragonCrusader:**_ _ **Thanks!**_

 _ **AnnaUnicorn:**_ _ **Yeah, and if you guys have any other questions, then I would be glad to clear it up for you.**_

 _ **Nyla the lioness:**_ _ **Thank you so much. Here's the next chapter for you.**_

 _ **Sealure:**_ _ **I do the same exact thing, so it's super helpful. I will probably do something like that, except it might end up a little bit different.**_

 _ **KriKri:**_ _ **That is definitely true. About Nico, the story is set basically a few weeks after BoO, but instead of waiting a year, Leo saved Calypso and came back immediately. Also, I chose Nico to read it, because I was just thinking about who hadn't read yet and just went with the first person I thought of, so… You're not being moany at all and the chapter in the book was super short. The criticism absolutely helps so, thanks.**_

* * *

"Ooh, I want to know what happens next, let me read." Hermes pleaded.

Nico handed him the book once he was done drinking his water.

" _ **Annabeth decided the monsters wouldn't kill her. Neither would the poisonous atmosphere, nor the treacherous landscape with its pits, cliffs, and jagged rocks. Nope. Most likely she would die from an overload of**_ **weirdness** _ **that would make her brain explode. First, she and Percy had had to drink fire to stay alive. Then they were attacked by a gaggle of vampires, led by a cheerleader Annabeth had killed two years ago. Finally, they were rescued by a Titan janitor named Bob who had Einstein hair, silver eyes, and wicked broom skills."**_

"Does anybody find it a little strange that Percy and Annabeth described Bob in almost the same exact way?" Apollo asked.

"Yeah, what's up with that?" Hermes questioned.

Everybody just kind of shrugged.

" _ **Sure. Why not?"**_

" _ **They followed Bob through the wasteland, tracing the route of the Phlegethon as they approached the storm front of darkness. Every so often they stopped to drink firewater, which kept them alive, but Annabeth wasn't happy about it. Her throat felt like she was constantly gargling with battery acid. Her only comfort was Percy. Every so often he would glance over and smile, or squeeze her hand. He had to be just as scared and miserable as she was, and she loved him for trying to make her feel better."**_

" _ **Bob knows what he's doing," Percy promised."**_

" _ **You have interesting friends," Annabeth murmured."**_

" _ **Bob is interesting!" The Titan turned and grinned. "Yes, thank you!" The big guy had good ears. Annabeth would have to remember that."**_

" _ **So, Bob…" She tried to sound casual and friendly, which wasn't easy with a throat scorched by firewater. "How did you get to Tartarus?"**_

" _ **I jumped," he said, like it was obvious. "You jumped into Tartarus," she said, "because Percy said your name?"**_

" _ **He needed me." Those silver eyes gleamed in the darkness. "It is okay. I was tired of sweeping the palace. Come along! We are almost at a rest stop."**_

"Wow, that is one dedicated friend, I've gotta say." Artemis complimented.

"Yeah, I just wish I could have done the same for him." Percy lamented.

" **A rest stop.** _ **Annabeth couldn't imagine what those words meant in Tartarus. She remembered all the times she, Luke, and Thalia had relied on highway rest stops when they were homeless demigods, trying to survive. Wherever Bob was taking them, she hoped it had clean restrooms and a snack machine. She repressed the giggles. Yes, she was definitely losing it."**_

" _ **Annabeth hobbled along, trying to ignore the rumble in her stomach. She stared at Bob's back as he led them toward the wall of darkness, now only a few hundred yards away. His blue janitor's coveralls were ripped between the shoulder blades, as if someone had tried to stab him. Cleaning rags stuck out of his pocket. A squirt bottle swung from his belt, the blue liquid inside sloshing hypnotically. Annabeth remembered Percy's story about meeting the Titan. Thalia Grace, Nico di Angelo, and Percy had worked together to defeat Bob on the banks of the Lethe. After wiping his memory, they didn't have the heart to kill him. He became so gentle and sweet and cooperative that they left him at the palace of Hades, where Persephone promised he would be looked after. Apparently, the Underworld king and queen thought "looking after" someone meant giving him a broom and having him sweep up their messes. Annabeth wondered how even Hades could be so callous. She'd never felt sorry for a Titan before, but it didn't seem right taking a brainwashed immortal and turning him into an unpaid janitor."**_

"Man, that's messed up."

Percy and Annabeth were too busy glaring at Hades to listen to what Leo had to say.

"Look, it wasn't my idea, it's not like I could say no to Persephone, anyways." Hades said, trying to defend himself.

" _ **He's not your friend, she reminded herself. She was terrified that Bob would suddenly remember himself. Tartarus was where monsters came to regenerate. What if it healed his memory? If he became Iapetus again... well, Annabeth had seen the way he had dealt with those**_ **empousai.** _ **Annabeth had no weapon. She and Percy were in no condition to fight a Titan. She glanced nervously at Bob's broom handle, wondering how long it would be before that hidden spearhead jutted out and got pointed at her."**_

"I was definitely wrong about that one, I misjudged him." Annabeth admitted.

Everyone was too shocked that Annabeth had admitted to being wrong about something to say anything.

" _ **Following Bob through Tartarus was a crazy risk. Unfortunately, she couldn't think of a better plan. They picked their way across the ashen wasteland as red lightning flashed overhead in the poisonous clouds. Just another lovely day in the dungeon of creation. Annabeth couldn't see far in the hazy air, but the longer they walked, the more certain she became that the entire landscape was a downward curve. She'd heard conflicting descriptions of Tartarus. It was a bottomless pit. It was a fortress surrounded by brass walls. It was nothing but an endless void. One story described it as the inverse of the sky-a huge, hollow, upside-down dome of rock. That seemed the most accurate though if Tartarus was a dome, Annabeth guessed it was like the sky-with no real bottom but made of multiple layers, each one darker and less hospitable than the last. And even**_ **that** _ **wasn't the full, horrible truth…."**_

" _ **They passed a blister in the ground-a writhing, translucent bubble the size of a minivan. Curled inside was the half-formed body of a drakon. Bob speared the blister without a second thought. It burst in a geyser of steaming yellow slime, and the drakon dissolved into nothing. Bob kept walking. Monsters are zits on the skin of Tartarus, Annabeth thought. She shuddered. Sometimes she wished she didn't have such a good imagination, because now she was certain they were walking across a living thing. This whole twisted landscape-the dome, pit, or whatever you called it-was the body of the god Tartarus-the most ancient incarnation of evil. Just as Gaea inhabited the surface of the earth, Tartarus inhabited the pit. If the god noticed them walking across his skin, like fleas on a dog...Enough. No more thinking."**_

"Oh, so, even more references to Tartarus being alive, goody, cause, it's not like I wasn't creeped out already." Jason said, sarcastically.

" _ **Here," Bob said. They stopped at the top of a ridge. Below them, in a sheltered depression like a moon crater, stood a ring of broken black marble columns surrounding a dark stone altar. "Hermes's shrine," Bob explained."**_

" _ **Percy frowned. "A Hermes shrine in**_ **Tartarus?"** _ **Bob laughed in delight. "Yes. It fell from somewhere long ago. Maybe mortal world. Maybe Olympus. Anyway, monsters steer clear. Mostly."**_

"How _did_ your shrine end up down there?" Percy asked.

"Man, I am totally blanking here, I have no idea. I guess I need to start checking up on my shrines more from now on." Hermes replied.

" _ **How did you know it was here?" Annabeth asked. Bob's smile faded. He got a vacant look in his eyes. "Can't remember."**_

"It seems like that was just muscle memory, that's how he knew to go to the shrine, he wasn't actually remembering." Athena theorized.

" _ **That's okay," Percy said quickly. Annabeth felt like kicking herself. Before Bob became Bob, he had been Iapetus the Titan. Like all his brethren, he'd been imprisoned in Tartarus for eons. Of**_ **course** _ **he knew his way around. If he remembered this shrine, he might start recalling other details of his old prison and his old life. That would**_ **not** _ **be good. They climbed into the crater and entered the circle of columns. Annabeth collapsed on a broken slab of marble, too exhausted to take another step. Percy stood over her protectively, scanning their surroundings. The inky storm front was less than a hundred feet away now, obscuring everything ahead of them. The crater's rim blocked their view of the wasteland behind. They'd be well hidden here, but if monsters**_ **did** _ **stumble across them, they would have no warning."**_

" _ **You said someone was chasing us," Annabeth said. "Who?"**_

 _ **Bob swept his broom around the base of the altar, occasionally crouching to study the ground as if looking for something. "They are following, yes. They know you are here. Giants and Titans. The defeated ones. They know."**_ **The defeated ones…** _ **"**_

" _ **Annabeth tried to control her fear. How many Titans and giants had she and Percy fought over the years? Each one had seemed like an impossible challenge. If**_ **all** _ **of them were down here in Tartarus, and if they were actively hunting Percy and Annabeth…"Why are we stopping, then?" she said. "We should keep moving."**_

"Yes, keep moving, because if they're all coming then, there is no way for you two to make it out of there." Mars warned.

" _ **Soon," Bob said. "But mortals need rest. Good place here. Best place for...oh, long, long way. I will guard you." Annabeth glanced at Percy, sending him the silent message:**_ **Uh, no.** _ **Hanging out with a Titan was bad enough. Going to sleep while the Titan guarded you...she didn't need to be a daughter of Athena to know that was one hundred percent unwise. "You sleep," Percy told her. "I'll keep the first watch with Bob." Bob rumbled in agreement. "Yes, good. When you wake, food should be here!"**_

Hermes squinted at the page. "Wait, did I read that right, he said food, right?"

"How would you guys get food?" Hazel asked.

Most of the other gods facepalmed at Hermes. "From your shrine, you idiot, they would get food from your shrine." Ares growled.

" _ **Annabeth's stomach did a rollover at the mention of food. She didn't see how Bob could summon food in the midst of Tartarus. Maybe he was a caterer as well as a janitor. She didn't want to sleep, but her body betrayed her. Her eyelids turned to lead. "Percy, wake my for second watch. Don't be a hero."**_

"Annabeth, look at who you're talking to. That Kelp Head is probably going to let you sleep the entire time." Thalia said.

" _ **He gave her that smirk she'd come to love. "Who, me?"**_

" _ **He kissed her, his lips parched and feverishly warm, "Sleep."**_

 _ **Annabeth felt like she was back in the Hypnos cabin at Camp Half-Blood, overcome with drowsiness. She curled up on the hard ground and closed her eyes."**_

"You know, I think that that's one of the calmest chapter endings we've had." Grover observed.

"Yeah, I also think that that is the perfect place for a little break, we can meet back here in about 20 minutes?" Demeter suggested.

The demigods agreed and went wandering for a little while.

* * *

 _ **AN: The next chapter is going to be a little shorter, because I want to try writing about them wandering around, so, there isn't going to be another HoO chapter in the next one. And when I say shorter, I mean significantly shorter. Just warning you guys. Also, read**_ **Heart by Heart** _ **by Luna-Incendia14. That story is probably one of the most well written stories I have ever read. Oh, yeah, I have a tumblr, now, if you guys are interested. It's the same username as it is on here. See you guys soon.**_


	11. A Break

_**Disclaimer: I don't own anything, Rick Riordan does.**_

 _ **AN: Wow, so this ended up being a lot longer than I expected.**_

 _ **DeadlyHuggles:**_ _ **I really do need to start sleeping earlier, but I've been doing it for so long now, that I barely even register that it's that late.**_

 _ **Ester Shadow:**_ _ **Thank you!**_

 _ **Percabeth824:**_ _ **Thank you, and I might actually do something like that, not completely sure on when though.**_

 _ **Katlover98:**_ _ **Thanks!**_

* * *

Once they had left the throne room, Hera turned to Demeter, "Are you sure that we should leave a bunch of kids unsupervised here, on Olympus."

"Let me remind you sister, that these are the same _kids_ who have just been through two wars back to back with our two greatest enemies. It's rather impressive, considering the fact that they didn't have enough cereal." Demeter finished frowning.

"Oh gods, not this again." Hera started, already exasperated. "How long is it going to take for you to get over this obsession with cereal? We are all sick and tired of hearing about it. All day, it's just "you should have some more cereal" and "you know what would help with that problem, more cereal." Oh, and my _personal_ favorite "you wouldn't have these issues if you just ate some more cereal." Please, just let it go, already." As you can imagine, this went on for a while, in fact, there's a very high possibility that it's still going on now.

 _ **Meanwhile, over in one of the more sane parts of Olympus:**_

 _ **Leo's POV:**_

"So, what do you guys want to do, now?" Leo asked.

"Oh, well, um, I think that me and Hazel were gonna go and explore the gardens for a little while." Frank said, before walking off with Hazel.

"And I need to catch up on what's been happening with my little bro Jason, and I know exactly where to start." Thalia smirked evilly at Piper, while dragging her away from the rest of the group.

Jason followed quickly, worried about what the two of them could tell each other about him.

"Hey, uh, guys, did you see where Nico went?" Grover said, looking around.

"I don't know, I haven't seen him since we were in the throne room. I'm sure he'll turn up again, don't worry about it." With that, Annabeth decided on giving Percy a tour of the renovated Olympus, and they left together.

"Hey guys, wait up, I'm gonna come with you guys. It feels like it's been forever since I talked to my two best friends." Grover shouted after them.

"You know what, that's totally cool guys, I'll just find something else to do." Leo said, awkwardly, even though nobody could hear him anymore.

* * *

He decided to just pick a direction and see where he ended up. While he was walking, he noticed a large group of people waiting around in front of a small stage, where there was a band setting up their instruments.

"Hey, what band is this?" Leo asked one of the people in the crowd.

The guy turned around and looked at him confused. "Do you not know who they are?"

"Um, no, that's kind of why I asked."

"Man, those are the Muses, they have the best music that you will find anywhere on the planet." the guy said.

Leo wanted to see if the band lived up to the expectations, so he stayed and watched the concert.

He soon came to the conclusion that they were his new favorite band.

Once the encore was over, he went up to the group of 4 women to find out where he could get some of their CDs, _because, damn, that music was amazing._ When he finally got to the stage, the Muses were getting ready to leave, so he just blurted out the first thing that came to his head.

"Hey, I'm Leo. Do you guys know how to play any disney songs?"

"I'm sorry, I meant to ask what your names are, cause I'm not really sure. This is my first time hearing you guys play."

"Oh, that's cool, I'm Clio, this is Thalia, that's Mel, and she's Callie." she pointed them each out as she spoke.

"Wait, did you say your name was Callie?" Leo asked.

"Well, my name's actually Calliope, but Callie is just more marketable and modern, Why?" she replied.

"It's nothing, you just reminded me of somebody else I know."

"Oh yeah, Is there anywhere for me to get a CD, because I need to hear some of that music again."

"I'm sorry, we only do live shows, but if you want more, we're having another concert in a few days, right here." Callie told him apologetically.

"Cool, I hope I get to come and see it."

"Okay, so, we need to go and get some rest now, so we're going to head out. Bye, Leo." they said, before going inside a nearby building.

Leo figured that that was enough exploring for now and started heading back towards the throne room.

* * *

 _ **Nico's POV:**_

Nico hadn't exactly _planned_ on eavesdropping on his sister and her boyfriend, but a little while after he went off alone, he heard them talking on the other side of the large hedges in the garden.

"-was the moment you realized you liked me?" Frank was saying.

Now, that made Nico curious and he kind of accidentally started walking alongside them on the other side of the hedges.

"Wow, can we make it different moment?" Frank continued.

He could just make out Hazel laughing.

"You know, it really is beautiful here." Hazel said, and Nico could see her looking around through the bushes.

"Yeah, it really is." Frank agreed, even though he wasn't looking at the plants surrounding him.

"You know what we should do?" He heard Frank ask Hazel.

 _Tread lightly, Frank, tread very lightly._ Nico thought.

"What?"

"We should try to-wait, did you hear that?"

"Hear what?"

"It sounded like some branches breaking."

Nico froze immediately. He would normally just shadow travel out of there to avoid being caught, but he was still under strict orders from Will Solace to "Stay away from that Underworld magic."

"I guess it was nothing, I'm just a little jumpy." Frank said and Nico finally relaxed.

After a suspiciously long pause, Nico assumed something was happening between them and jumped out of the hedges in an attempt to stop them. The sound of Nico jumping out made Hazel and Frank turn around at the same time that Nico realized that they had kept moving quietly and were now about ten feet in front of him.

"Nico? What are you doing here?" Hazel asked.

"Yeah, and were you just hiding in the bushes?" Frank added after noticing all of the twigs in Nico's hair and the large hole in the hedge right next to Nico.

"Umm, Nooo, I was doing no such thing, I was just walking around... when someone…. pushed me…. through those plants. Yeah, that's exactly what happened." Nico tried defending himself. When he noticed that they didn't believe him, he just turned around and ran as fast as he could. Hazel and Frank were left staring after him, completely shocked at what had just occurred.

* * *

 _ **Jason's POV:**_

"Thalia, please don't tell me that you're telling Piper things that she doesn't need to know." Jason said, glaring at her once he had caught up with the two girls.

"Relax, I'm only telling her things that she absolutely _does_ need to know, like how when you were younger, it was impossible to get you to take a bath, because every time you touched the water you started conducting electricity." Thalia said calmly.

"Oh my gods, are you serious, that is amazing, Sparky."

"Okay, that is exactly the type of thing that should be on the doesn't need to know list." Jason blushed.

"Wait, did you just call him _Sparky?_ " Thalia started laughing, "I think we're going to get along nicely, Piper. Just don't ever call me Sparky." she finished seriously.

Jason had no choice but to listen to his girlfriend and sister exchange embarrassing stories about him.

"Oh, and there was this one time we were on the _Argo II_ when all of us started leaving bricks everywhere for Jason to see." By that point Piper was laughing so hard that she could barely get through the sentence.

Thalia had been well informed of her little brother's problems with bricks, so pretty soon, she was dying of laughter as well.

The rest of their break went similarly, with the two girls going back and forth with stories, until they decided that it was time for them to head back and continue reading the story.

* * *

 _ **AN: So, there probably aren't going to be a ton of chapters like this, but I wanted to see what it would look like if I did one with just the characters. But, let me know if you think I should try to do more chapters like this or just stick with the reading ones. This time, I'm going to recommend**_ **Fried Chicken With a Cute Waiter On the Side, Please** _ **by fangirl2048. I'll see you guys whenever the next chapter gets done.**_


	12. It's a Pen

_**Disclaimer: I don't own anything, Rick Riordan does.**_

 _ **AN: It feels like it's been so long since the last chapter, but it hasn't even been a full week yet. Perks of summer vacation, I guess. Also, I think that this is the longest chapter we've had so far.**_

 _ **Percabeth824:**_ _ **Thank you!**_

 _ **Allen r:**_ _ **Yeah, but the reason I didn't put in Percy and Annabeth's POV was because the story is mostly focused on them anyways, and I felt like I was forgetting about the other characters a little bit. Hope that makes sense.**_

 _ **KriKri:**_ _ **That's fine, I put up the chapters only two days apart, and that sucks, I hope this week was better. Congrats on the bet and happy late birthday. It's always a good time when you get books as presents. I kinda figured that he wouldn't really know about them because, he didn't grow up learning about the myths and the entire time that he was at camp, he was either on a quest or building the**_ **Argo II,** _ **so I think that he just never really had the time to learn about them. You'll just have to wait on the drama for now.**_

 _ **Pegasusrider:**_ _ **Thank you, and I am definitely doing more.**_

 _ **Blackjackpegasus:**_ _ **Thanks, I was hoping they were in character.**_

* * *

"And, where have you three been? We told you to be back here in twenty minutes, not two hours." Poseidon boomed as soon as he heard the doors to the throne room start creaking open.

"Yeah, where were you guys? The rest of us got back, like, an hour ago." Piper asked, turning around on the couch to look back at the trio.

"Sorry, we just lost track of time while Annabeth was showing us around the updated Olympus." Percy said.

"It's okay, I'm not angry at you guys, it's just that we're worried enough as it is, because of the book, we don't need any more reason to be worried right now." Poseidon said, relieved.

"So, can we keep reading now, I really want to know what happens next." Surprisingly enough, it was Dionysus who interrupted.

"Okay, everybody settle in, we're going to be here for while." Athena warned everybody.

"Since you want to know what happens so badly, you can read the next chapter Dionysus." Zeus commanded.

"Oh, come on, it's bad enough that I have to watch the stupid camp, now you're making me _read_ too, will the punishment ever end?" Dionysus whined.

Zeus just glared at him until he picked up the book and started reading.

" _ **Later, she made a resolution: Never**_ **EVER** _ **sleep in Tartarus. Demigod dreams were always bad. Even in the safety of her bunk at camp, she'd had horrible nightmares. In Tartarus, they were a thousand times more vivid."**_

"Oh, man, that has got to _suck."_ Leo winced.

" _ **First, she was a little girl again, struggling to climb Half-Blood Hill. Luke Castellan held her hand, pulling her along. Their satyr guide Grover Underwood pranced nervously at the summit, yelling, "Hurry! Hurry!"**_

" _ **Thalia Grace stood behind them, holding back an army of hellhounds with her terror-invoking shield, Aegis. From the top of the hill, Annabeth could see the camp in the valley below-the warm lights of the cabins, the possibility of sanctuary. She stumbled, twisting her ankle, and Luke scooped her up to carry her. When they looked back, the monsters were only a few yards away-dozens of them surrounding Thalia."**_

" _ **Go!" Thalia yelled. "I'll hold them off." She brandished her spear, and forked lightning slashed through the monsters' ranks; but as the hellhounds fell, more took their place. "We have to run!" Grover cried.**_

 _ **He led the way into camp. Luke followed, with Annabeth crying, beating at his chest, and screaming that they couldn't leave Thalia alone. But it was too late."**_

All the demigods were shocked, because most of them hadn't heard the story of Thalia's sacrifice, but Percy and Annabeth were especially quiet. Annabeth, because she was lost in her memories of that time. And Percy, because, while he had heard the story before, this was the first time he had heard any details of what happened that day.

Eventually they snapped out of it and tuned back into Dionysus's reading.

" _ **The scene shifted. Annabeth was older, climbing to the summit of Half-Blood Hill. Where Thalia had made her last stand, a tall pine tree now rose. Overhead a storm was raging. Thunder shook the valley. A blast of lightning split the tree down to its roots, opening a smoking crevice. In the darkness below stood Reyna, the praetor of New Rome. Her cloak was the color of blood fresh from a vein. Her gold armor glinted. She stared up, her face regal and distant, and spoke directly into Annabeth's mind.**_ **You have done well,** _ **Reyna said, but the voice was Athena's.**_ **The rest of my journey must be on the wings of Rome.** _ **The praetor's dark eyes turned as gray as storm clouds.**_ **I must stand here,** _ **Reyna told her.**_ **The Roman must bring me."**

Everyone immediately turned towards Athena. "Daughter, did I not forbid all contact with the mortal world?" Zeus roared.

"You did, in fact, forbid it father, but that was a foolish decision. I chose to take the wisest path and give our children the best chance of survival." Athena calmly stated.

"Damn, Zeus can _not_ catch a break this week." Poseidon muttered under his breath.

"What was that, brother?" Zeus turned his head sharply towards the sea god, angry at Athena's disrespect.

"What was what? I didn't say anything." Poseidon said, feigning innocence. Luckily, Zeus bought it.

" _ **The hill shook. The ground rippled as the grass became folds of silk-the dress of a massive goddess. Gaea rose over Camp Half-Blood-her sleeping face as large as a mountain. Hellhounds poured over the hills. Giants, six-armed Earthborn, and wild cyclopes charged from the beach, tearing down the dining pavilion, setting fire to the cabins and the Big House.**_ **Hurry,** _ **said the voice of Athena.**_ **The message must be sent.** _ **The ground split at Annabeth's feet and she fell into darkness. Her eyes flew open. She cried out, grasping Percy's arms. She was still in Tartarus, at the shrine of Hermes. "It's okay," Percy promised. "Bad dreams?"**_

" _ **Her body tingled with dread. "Is it-is it my turn to watch?"**_

" _ **No, no. We're good. I let you sleep."**_

" _ **Percy!"**_

"What did I tell you was going to happen?" Thalia said smugly.

"Okay, one, it was already too late to listen to what you said before, and two, nobody ever disagreed with you, Thals." Annabeth said, shutting her down.

" _ **Hey, it's fine. Besides, I was too excited to sleep. Look." Bob the Titan sat cross-legged by the altar, happily munching a piece of pizza. Annabeth rubbed her eyes, wondering if she was still dreaming. "Is that….pepperoni?"**_

"How did you get pizza down there?" Jason asked, incredulously.

"Yeah, and can we get some too?" Leo added.

"I'm sure they'll explain at some point Jason, and Leo, here you go." Hestia waved her hand and various assortments of pizza appeared on a table nearby. Everybody immediately got up and rushed over to it.

Once everyone had settled down with their food, they continued.

" _ **Burnt offerings," Percy said. "Sacrifices to Hermes from the mortal world, I guess. They appeared in a cloud of smoke. We've got half a hot dog, some grapes, a plate of roast beef, and a package of peanut M &M's."**_

"Oh, that actually makes a lot of sense." Jason said, through a mouthful of pepperoni pizza.

" _ **M &M's for Bob!" Bob said happily. "Uh, that okay?"**_

" _ **Annabeth didn't protest. Percy brought her the plate of roast beef, and she wolfed it down. She'd never tasted anything so good. The brisket was still hot, with exactly the same spice sweet glaze as the barbecue at Camp Half-Blood."**_

" _ **I know," said Percy, reading her expression. "I think it**_ **is** _ **from Camp Half-Blood."**_

" _ **The idea made Annabeth giddy with homesickness. At every meal, the campers would burn a portion of their food to honor their godly parents. The smoke supposedly pleased the gods, but Annabeth had never thought about where the food went when it was burned. Maybe the offerings reappeared on the gods' altars in Olympus….or even here, in the middle of Tartarus."**_

" _ **Peanut M &M's" Annabeth said. "Connor Stoll always burned a pack for his dad at dinner." She thought about sitting in the dining pavilion, watching the sunset over Long Island Sound. That was the first place she and Percy had truly kissed. Her eyes smarted. Percy put his hand on her shoulder. "Hey, this is **_**good.** _ **Actual food from home, right?"**_

 _ **She nodded. They finished eating in silence. Bob chomped down the last of his M &M's. "Should go now. They will be here in a few minutes."**_

" _ **A few**_ **minutes?"** _ **Annabeth reached for her dagger, then remembered she didn't have it. "Yes….well, I**_ **think** _ **minutes…." Bob scratched his silvery hair. "Time is hard in Tartarus. Not the same." Percy crept to the edge of the crater. He peered back the way they'd come. "I don't see anything, but that doesn't mean much. Bob, which giants are we talking about? Which Titans?"**_

" _ **Bob grunted. "Not sure of names. Six, maybe seven. I can sense them."**_

" **Six or seven?"** _ **Annabeth wasn't sure her barbecue would stay down. "And can they sense**_ **you?"**

"That's not good. That's really very not good." Hazel muttered.

" _ **Don't know." Bob smiled. "Bob is different! But they can smell demigods, yes. You two smell very strong. Good strong. Like….hmm. Like buttery bread!"**_

" _ **Buttery bread," Annabeth said. "Well, that's great."**_

"You know, I've always wanted to know what we smelled like to monsters. At least, now we know, right?" Percy said.

" _ **Percy climbed back to the altar. "Is it possible to kill a giant in Tartarus? I mean, since we don't have a god to help us?" He looked at Annabeth as if she actually had an answer. "Percy, I don't know. Traveling in Tartarus, fighting monsters here... it's never been done before. Maybe Bob could help us kill a giant? Maybe a Titan would count as a god? I just don't know."**_

" _ **Yeah," Percy said. "Okay." She could see the worry in his eyes. For years, he'd depended on her for answers. Now, when he needed her the most, she couldn't help. She hated being so clueless, but nothing she'd ever learned at camp had prepared her for Tartarus. There was only one thing she was sure of: they had to keep moving. They couldn't be caught by six or seven hostile immortals. She stood, still disoriented from her nightmares. Bob started cleaning up, collecting their trash in a little pile, using his squirt bottle to wipe off the altar."**_

"Hey, it looks like we trained him well, he's still doing his job." Hades exclaimed, which for him was the volume of regular talking.

" _ **Where to now?" Annabeth asked. Percy pointed at the stormy wall of darkness. "Bob says that way. Apparently the Doors of Death-"**_

" _ **You**_ **told** _ **him?" Annabeth didn't mean it to come out so harsh, but Percy winced. "While you were asleep," he admitted. "Annabeth, Bob can help. We need a guide."**_

" _ **Bob helps!" Bob agreed. "Into the Dark Lands. The Doors of Death….hmm, walking straight to them would be bad. Too many monsters gathered there. Even Bob could not sweep that many. They would kill Percy and Annabeth in about two seconds." The Titan frowned. "I**_ **think** _ **seconds. Time is hard in Tartarus."**_

"Why does Bob keep mentioning the thing about time?" Frank asked.

"You know, I don't really know why." Hermes answered.

" _ **Right," Annabeth grumbled. "So is there another way?"**_

" _ **Hiding," said Bob. "The Death Mist could hide you."**_

" _ **Oh…" Annabeth suddenly felt very small in the shadow of the Titan. "Uh, what is Death Mist?"**_

" _ **It is dangerous," Bob said. "But if the lady will give you Death Mist, it might hide you. If we can avoid Night. The lady is**_ **very** _ **close to Night. That is bad."**_

" _ **The lady," Percy repeated.**_

" _ **Yes." Bob pointed ahead of them into the inky blackness. "We should go." Percy glanced at Annabeth, obviously hoping for guidance, but she had none. She was thinking about her nightmare-Thalia's tree splintered by lightning, Gaea rising on the hillside and unleashing her monsters on Camp Half-Blood. "Okay, then," Percy said. "I guess we see a lady about some Death Mist."**_

" _ **Wait," Annabeth said. Her mind was buzzing. She thought of her dream about Luke and Thalia. She recalled the stories Luke had told her about his father, Hermes-god of travelers, guide to the spirits of the dead, god of communication. She stared at the black altar. "Annabeth?" Percy sounded concerned."**_

" _ **She walked to the pile of trash and picked out a reasonably clean paper napkin. She remembered her vision of Reyna, standing in the smoking crevice beneath the ruins of Thalia's pine tree, speaking with the voice of Athena:**_ **I must stand here. The Roman must bring me. Hurry. The message must be sent."**

"Oh, that's smart, Annabeth. I wouldn't even have thought of that." Hermes said realizing what she was about to do. Most of the other people were still confused.

" _ **Bob," she said, "offerings burned in the mortal world appear on this altar right?"**_

" _ **Bob frowned uncomfortably, like he wasn't ready for a pop quiz. "Yes?"**_

" _ **So what happens if I burn something on the altar here?"**_

"Holy Hephaestus! That's genius." Leo exclaimed once everyone had caught on to the plan.

" _ **Uh…."**_

" _ **That's all right," Annabeth said. "You don't know. Nobody know, because it's never been done." There was a chance, she thought, just the slimmest chance that an offering burned on this altar might appear at Camp Half-Blood. Doubtful, but if it**_ **did** _ **work…"**_

" _ **Annabeth?" Percy said again. "You're planning something. You've got that**_ **I'm-planning-something** _ **look."**_

" _ **I don't have an**_ **I'm-planning-something** _ **look."**_

" _ **Yeah, you totally do. Your eyebrows knit and your lips press together and-"**_

"Oh my gods, you even have her facial expressions memorized. That's freaking adorable." Aphrodite stated, like the adorableness was a fact.

" _ **Do you have a pen?" she asked him.**_

" _ **You're kidding, right?" He brought out Riptide. "Yes, but can you actually write with it?"**_

" _ **I-I don't know," he admitted. "Never tried."**_

"Well, we know it doesn't do grenade form." Frank helpfully put in.

"Shut up, Frank." Percy said smiling at Frank and remembering the talk with Mars after the War Games at Camp Jupiter.

" _ **He uncapped the pen. As usual, it sprang into a full-sized sword. Annabeth had watched him do this hundreds of times. Normally when he fought, Percy simply discarded the cap. It always appeared in his pocket later, as needed. When he touched the cap to the point of the sword, it would turn back into a ballpoint pen."**_

" _ **What if you touch the cap to the other end of the sword?" Annabeth said. "Like where you'd put the cap if you were actually going to write with the pen."**_

" _ **Uh…" Percy looked doubtful, but he touched the cap to the hilt of the sword. Riptide shrank back into a ballpoint pen, but now the writing point was exposed."**_

"How did you never think to try this before?" Hephaestus asked.

"I don't really know,with the amount of fidgeting I do with that thing, I'm surprised it hadn't happened yet." Percy replied.

" _ **May I?" Annabeth plucked it from his hand. She flattened the napkin against the altar and began to write. Riptide's ink glowed Celestial Bronze. "What are you doing?" Percy asked."**_

" _ **Sending a message," Annabeth said. "I just hope Rachel gets it."**_

" _ **Rachel?" Percy asked. "You mean**_ **our** _ **Rachel? Oracle of Delphi Rachel?"**_

" _ **That's the one." Annabeth suppressed a smile. Whenever she brought up Rachel's name, Percy got nervous. At one point, Rachel had been interested in dating Percy. That was ancient history. Rachel and Annabeth were good friends now. But Annabeth didn't mind making Percy a little uneasy. You had keep your boyfriend on his toes. Annabeth finished her note and folded the napkin. On the outside, she wrote:**_

" **Connor,**

 **Give this to Rachel. Not a prank.**

 **Don't be a moron.**

 **Love, Annabeth"**

" _ **She took a deep breath. She was asking Rachel Dare to do something ridiculously dangerous, but it was the only way she could think of to communicate with the Romans-the only way that might avoid bloodshed. "Now I just need to burn it," she said. "Anybody got a match?"**_

" _ **The point of Bob's spear shot from his broom handle. It sparked against the altar and erupted in silvery fire."**_

" _ **Uh, thanks." Annabeth lit the napkin and set it on the altar. She watched it crumble to ash and wondered if she was crazy. Could the smoke really make it out of Tartarus?"**_

" _ **We should go now," Bob advised. "Really, really go. Before we are killed."**_

"Yeah, I would listen to the Titan, I prefer not to be killed before 8:30pm." Leo said.

 _ **Annabeth stared at the wall of blackness in front of them. Somewhere in there was a lady who dispensed a Death Mist that**_ **might** _ **hide them from monsters-a plan recommended by a Titan, one of their bitterest enemies. Another dose of weirdness to explode her brain. "Right," she said. "I'm ready."**_

"Ugh, finally, that was the end of the chapter, I'm never reading again. Somebody, _please,_ take it away from me." Dionysus groaned.

* * *

 _ **AN: I'm pretty sure Small Bob and the Arai show up in the next chapter, so I'm pretty excited. Right now, I'm feeling a little angsty, so I'm gonna recommend**_ **Half-Blood High** _ **by Percyjacksonfan3, I just re-read this the other day, and it is**_ **so** _ **good. I will see you guys soon.**_


	13. Manipulation

_**Disclaimer: I don't own anything, Rick Riordan does.**_

 _ **AN: Sorry about this chapter being late, I just had a super busy weekend, but the chapter is here now, so…**_

 _ **DeadlyHuggles:**_ _ **It's totally fine if you did miss them and thanks for that. Also, I hope your sleep schedule gets better (I say as I write this chapter at 3:30 in the morning, but we're just going to ignore that)**_

 _ **AnnaUnicorn:**_ _ **Thank you! I do want to have them talk about that, but I'm not completely sure how to do it, but I am going to figure it out. I mean, it's always been such an important thing to Annabeth that everybody looks to her for help, so I'll try to do the best I can with that conversation.**_

 _ **KriKri:**_ _ **I feel bad about you guys having shorter vacations, but at the same time, I kinda want to laugh, because I'm just over here relaxing until September. I really did want to keep with the pattern of me uploading every Friday, but I seem incapable of sticking to a schedule. And, I know right, that fic is just**_ **so** _ **amazing.**_

 _ **Sealure:**_ _ **Thank you so much, and, yes, Nico is in this. But, I think there are like two more chapters until then, and I really hope I can get everybody's reactions right, because that scene alone made HoH shoot up my list of favorite books of all time.**_

* * *

"Give it here, Dionysus, I think that it's my turn to read." Artemis demanded.

Dionysus couldn't hand over the book faster. Artemis cleared her throat before she began reading.

" _ **Annabeth literally stumbled over the second Titan. After entering the storm front, they plodded on for what seemed like hours, relying on the light of Percy's Celestial bronze blade, and on Bob, who glowed faintly in the dark like some sort of crazy janitor angel."**_

"I think I might be rubbing off on you a little Wise Girl. I mean, " _crazy janitor angels?"_ Percy teased.

"Shut up."

" _ **Annabeth could only see about five feet in front of her. In a strange way, the Dark Lands reminded her of San Francisco, where her dad lived-on those summer afternoons when the fog bank rolled in like cold, wet packing material and swallowed Pacific Heights. Except here in Tartarus, the fog was made of ink. Rocks loomed out of nowhere. Pits appeared at their feet, and Annabeth barely avoided falling in. Monstrous roars echoed in the gloom, but Annabeth couldn't tell where they came from. All she could be certain of was that the terrain was still sloping down.**_ **Down** _ **seemed to be the only direction allowed in Tartarus. If Annabeth backtracked even a step, she felt tired and heavy, as if gravity were increasing to discourage her. Assuming that the entire pit**_ **was** _ **the body of Tartarus, Annabeth had a nasty feeling they were marching straight down his throat. She was so preoccupied with that thought, she didn't notice the ledge until it was too late."**_

" _ **Percy yelled, "Whoa!"**_

" _ **He grabbed for her arm, but she was already falling. Fortunately, it was only a shallow depression. Most of it was filled with a monster blister. She had a soft landing on a warm bouncy surface and was feeling lucky-until she opened her eyes and found herself staring through a glowing gold membrane at another much larger face."**_

" _That_ sounds disgustingly terrifying." Aphrodite shuddered.

"Tell me about it." Annabeth muttered under her breath.

" _ **She screamed and flailed, toppling sideways off the mound. Her heart did a hundred jumping jacks. Percy helped her to her feet. "You okay?"**_

" _ **She didn't trust herself to answer. If she opened her mouth, she might scream again, and that would be undignified. She was a daughter of Athena, not some shrill girlie victim in a horror movie. But gods of Olympus…. Curled in the membrane bubble in front of her was a fully formed Titan in golden armor, his skin the color of polished pennies. His eyes were closed, but he scowled so deeply he appeared to be on the verge of a bloodcurdling war cry. Even through the blister, Annabeth could feel the heat radiating from his body."**_

" _ **Hyperion," Percy said. "I hate that guy."**_

"Are you freaking kidding me? It took us forever to get him trapped and he's already reforming. Man, we have some really terrible luck." Grover said defeatedly.

Percy's face darkened a very slight amount once he remembered what happened next. What he did to Bob.

" _ **Annabeth's shoulder suddenly ached from an old wound. During the Battle of Manhattan, Percy had fought this Titan at the Reservoir-water against fire. It had been the first time Percy had summoned a hurricane-which wasn't something Annabeth would ever forget. "I thought Grover turned this guy into a maple tree."**_

" _ **Yeah," Percy agreed. "Maybe the maple tree died, and he wound up back here?"**_

" _ **Annabeth remembered how Hyperion had summoned fiery explosions, and how many satyrs and nymphs he'd destroyed before Percy and Grover stopped him. She was about to suggest that they burst Hyperion's bubble before he woke up. He looked ready to pop out at any moment and start charbroiling everything in his path. Then she glanced at Bob. The silvery Titan was studying Hyperion with a frown of concentration-maybe recognition. Their faces looked so much alike…."**_

" _ **Annabeth bit back a curse. Of course they looked alike. Hyperion was his**_ **brother.** _ **Hyperion was the Titan lord of the east. Iapetus, Bob, was the lord of the west. Take away Bob's broom and his janitor's clothes, put him in armor and cut his hair, change his color scheme from silver to gold, and Iapetus would have been almost indistinguishable from Hyperion. "Bob," she said, "we should go."**_

"Good idea, get him out of there before he realizes." Poseidon said, seriously.

" _ **Gold, not silver," Bob murmured. "But he looks like me."**_

"Welp, looks like it's too late now. Though, I gotta give him credit, he's smarter than I thought he was." Leo said.

" _ **Bob," Percy said. "Hey, buddy, over here."**_

" _ **The Titan reluctantly turned. "Am I your friend?" Percy asked.**_

" _ **Yes." Bob sounded dangerously uncertain. "We are friends."**_

" _ **You know that some monsters are good," Percy said. "And some are bad."**_

" _ **Hmm," Bob said. "Like...the pretty ghost ladies who serve Persephone are good. Exploding zombies are bad."**_

" _ **Right," Percy said. "And some mortals are good, and some are bad. Well, the same thing is true for Titans."**_

" _ **Titans…." Bob loomed over them, glowering. Annabeth was pretty sure her boyfriend had just made a big mistake."**_

" _ **That's what you are," Percy said calmly. "Bob the Titan. You're good. You're awesome, in fact. But some Titans are not. This guy here, Hyperion, is full-on bad. He tried to kill me...tried to kill a lot of people."**_

" _ **Bob blinked his silver eyes. "But he looks...his face is so-"**_

" _ **He looks like you," Percy agreed. "He's a Titan, like you. But he's not good like you are."**_

" _ **Bob is good." His fingers tightened on his broom handle. "Yes. There is always at least one good one-monsters, Titans, giants."**_

" _ **Uh…" Percy grimaced. "Well, I'm not sure about the giants."**_

" _ **Oh, yes." Bob nodded earnestly. Annabeth sensed they'd already been in this place too long. Their pursuers would be closing in."**_

" _ **We should go," she urged. "What do we do about...?"**_

" _ **Bob," Percy said, "it's your call. Hyperion is your kind. We could leave him alone, but if he wakes up-"**_

" _ **Bob's broom-spear swept into motion. If he'd been aiming at Annabeth or Percy, they would've been cut in half. Instead, Bob slashed through the monstrous blister, which burst in a geyser of hot golden mud."**_

"Oh, thank gods, I can't believe you let the Titan make a choice like that." Apollo said relieved.

"Don't worry, I knew what I was doing." Percy said with a blank expression and emotionless voice.

" _ **Annabeth wiped the Titan sludge out of her eyes. Where Hyperion had been, there was nothing but a smoking crater."**_

" _ **Hyperion is a bad Titan," Bob announced, his expression grim. "Now he can't hurt my friends. He will have to re-form somewhere else in Tartarus. Hopefully it will take a long time."**_

" _ **The Titan's eyes seemed brighter than usual, as if he were about to cry quicksilver. "Thank you, Bob," Percy said."**_

" _ **How was he keeping his cool? The way he talked to Bob left Annabeth awestruck...and maybe a little uneasy, too. If Percy had been serious about leaving the choice to Bob, then she didn't like how much he trusted the Titan. If he'd been manipulating Bob into making that choice...well, then, Annabeth was stunned that Percy could be so calculating. He met her eyes, but she couldn't read his expression. That bothered her too."**_

"I'm sorry about that, but I did what I needed to so that I could make sure we made it out of that place." Percy said quietly so that only Annabeth could hear.

"I understand that Percy, but that doesn't mean that I'm not at least a little worried about the fact that you were able to do something like that so easily." Annabeth said just as quietly, before turning back to Artemis.

" _ **We'd better keep going," he said. She and Percy followed Bob, the golden mud flecks from Hyperion's burst bubble glowing on his janitor's uniform."**_

"Looks like that was the end of the chapter." Artemis told everybody, who were unaware of the conversation between Percy and Annabeth.

"So, what-" Jason started before he was cut off by blinding light coming from behind the demigods couches.

The light finally died down after a minute or so only to reveal….

* * *

 _ **AN: I realized two things while writing (typing?) this chapter, one, this entire series was written in past tense, and two, Percy has told Annabeth everything including the quests that she wasn't on, so she already knows about the dam jokes and the first time Nico got turned into a plant. So, the story I want to recommend this time isn't actually on FanFiction, i _ **t's called**_ **Falling for the Devil** _ **and I'm not sure who wrote it, but holy crap that story was a fucking amazing journey.**_ You guys are just gonna have to go to google and type in "Falling for the Devil Tumblr" and it should be the first one. **__**I'll see you guys in the next chapter.**_


	14. Small Bob

_**Disclaimer: I don't own anything, Rick Riordan does.**_

 _ **AN: Finally, FanFiction is working again, now I can put up this next chapter. Also, I've started doing this thing where I write a chapter then write the next chapter's HoH parts at the same time, so hopefully that means that chapters will be up a little bit faster.**_

 _ **Death Fury:**_ _ **Okay, I have to know what timezone you live in, because I swear as soon as I post a chapter, you review. Thank you for that by the way, cause it's kinda amazing.**_

 _ **KriKri:**_ _ **I've always loved/hated cliffhangers too, but now I realize they're so much more fun to be on the opposite side of. This must be how Uncle Rick always feels. Anyways, I will definitely read that story once I have some more time. You know, I think that you're not completely over how long our summers are, I mean, just a guess.**_

 _ **Meistar:**_ _ **Here you go!**_

 _ **DeadlyHuggles:**_ _ **We can only hope that miracle will one day happen, but it seems that as of now, sleep is still an elusive mythical creature. And thank you!**_

* * *

Leo was running towards the door before anybody even processed that there were people that came from the light.

Leo had been the first to recover from the light and immediately started looking around when he noticed a tall, broad-shouldered girl with stringy brown hair standing next to the most beautiful girl he had ever seen in his life.

He had only one thought, _Calypso's here._

Once everybody got a hold of themselves, Calypso asked, "What are we doing _here?_ Clarisse and I were just in the arena at camp sparring when the light blinded us."

Athena explained to them what everybody was doing here and gave them the knowledge of everything that had happened in the book so far with a snap of her fingers. It took them a little while to process it all and once they had, they just had to sit down from all of the emotions they were experiencing all at once.

"Okay, so what happens next?" Calypso asked curiously.

"And who do these arai think they are, threatening you guys?" Clarisse asked angrily

Suddenly, Percy and Annabeth remembered what came next, and realized why Calypso was brought here, they weren't too sure about Clarisse though. Annabeth theorized that the light was only meant to take Calypso, but Clarisse had been too close and was accidently pulled in with her.

Ares decided that he wanted to read next, since there was going to be a bloody fight in this chapter.

Ares began reading with his booming voice almost echoing in the large room.

" _ **After a while, Annabeth's feet felt like Titan mush. She marched along, following Bob, listening to the monotonous slosh of liquid in his cleaning bottle.**_ **Stay alert,** _ **she told herself, but it was hard. Her thoughts were as numb as her legs. From time to time, Percy took her hand or made an encouraging comment; but she could tell the dark landscape was getting to him as well. His eyes had a dull sheen-like his spirit was being slowly extinguished.**_ **He fell into Tartarus to be with you,** _ **said a voice in her head.**_ **If he dies, it will be your fault."**

"Stop that," Percy interrupted. "It was _my_ choice to fall down with you. If I had died it would have been my own fault, nobody else's, okay?"

Annabeth remained silent.

"I need you to say it out loud. Say, "It wouldn't have been my fault if anything would have happened to you."

Annabeth hesitated for a second before repeating it.

" _ **Stop it," she said aloud."**_

" _ **Percy frowned. "What?"**_

" _ **No, not you." She tried for a reassuring smile, but she couldn't quite muster one. "Talking to myself. This place...it's messing with my mind. Giving me dark thoughts."**_

" _ **The worry lines deepened around Percy's sea-green eyes. "Hey, Bob, where exactly are we heading?"**_

" _ **The lady," Bob said. "Death Mist."**_

" _ **Annabeth fought down her irritation. "But what does that mean? Who is this lady?"**_

" _ **Naming her?" Bob glanced back. "Not a good idea."**_

" _ **Annabeth sighed. The Titan was right. Names had power, and speaking them here in Tartarus was probably very dangerous."**_

"Really? Why did nobody tell _us_ that names were dangerous?" Piper asked, referring to Leo, Jason, and herself.

"To be fair, we didn't really have a lot of time to explain everything to you guys before you had to leave for your quest." Annabeth replied.

" _ **Can you at least tell us how far?" she asked."**_

" _ **I do not know," Bob admitted. "I can only feel it. We wait for the darkness to get darker. Then we go sideways."**_

" _ **Sideways," Annabeth muttered. "Naturally."**_

" _ **She was tempted to ask for a rest, but she didn't want to stop. Not here in this cold, dark place. The black fog seeped into her body, turning her bones into moist Styrofoam. She wondered if her message would get to Rachel Dare. If Rachel could somehow carry her proposal to Reyna without getting killed in the process…**_ **A ridiculous hope,** _ **said the voice in her head.**_ **You have only put Rachel in danger. Even if she finds the Romans, why should Reyna trust you after all that has happened?"**

" _ **Annabeth was tempted to shout back at the voice, but she resisted. Even if she were going crazy, she didn't want to**_ **look** _ **like she was going crazy."**_

" _ **She desperately needed something to lift her spirits. A drink of actual water. A moment of sunlight. A warm bed. A kind word from her mother. Suddenly Bob stopped. He raised his hand.**_ **Wait."**

" _ **What?" Percy whispered.**_

" _ **Shh," Bob warned. "Ahead. Something moves."**_

" _ **Annabeth strained her ears. From somewhere in the fog came a deep thrumming noise, like the idling engine of a large construction vehicle. She could feel the vibrations through her shoes."**_

"Oh gods, that sounds like something big and dangerous." Grover muttered.

"Yeah, but the bigger they are, the more bloody the battle." Ares said, butchering the old saying.

" _ **We will surround it," Bob whispered. "Each of you, take a flank."**_

" _ **For the millionth time, Annabeth wished she had her dagger. She picked up a chunk of jagged black obsidian and crept to the left. Percy went right, his sword ready. Bob took the middle, his spearhead glowing in the fog. The humming got louder, shaking the gravel at Annabeth's feet. The noise seemed to be coming from immediately in front of them."**_

" _ **Ready?" Bob murmured. Annabeth crouched, preparing to spring. "On three?"**_

" _ **One," Percy whispered. "Two-"**_

" _ **A figure appeared in the fog. Bob raised his spear. "Wait!" Annabeth shrieked."**_

" _ **Bob froze just in time, the point of his spear hovering an inch above the head of a tiny calico kitten."**_

"Wait, what?" Demeter asked. "Did Ares just say a calico kitten, or am I just crazy?"

"Well, you _are_ crazy, but he did, in fact, say calico kitten." Hades snarked.

"So, what's a cat doing down there?" Hestia asked, while Demeter glared harshly towards Hades, who just looked back at her innocently.

Neither Percy or Annabeth answered her.

" _ **Rrow?" said the kitten, clearly unimpressed by their attack plan. It butted its head against Bob's foot and purred loudly. It seemed impossible, but the deep rumbling sound was coming from the kitten. As it purred, the ground vibrated and pebbles danced. The kitten fixed its yellow, lamp-like eyes on one particular rock, right between Annabeth's feet, and pounced. The cat could've been a demon or a horrible Underworld monster in disguise. But Annabeth couldn't help it. She picked it up and cuddled with it. The little thing was bony under its fur, but otherwise it seemed perfectly normal."**_

" _ **How did…?" She couldn't even form the question. "What is a kitten doing…?"**_

" _ **The cat grew impatient and squirmed out of her arms. It landed with a thump, padded over to Bob, and started purring again as it rubbed against his boots. Percy laughed. "Somebody likes you, Bob."**_

" _ **It must be a good monster." Bob looked up nervously. "Isn't it?"**_

" _ **Annabeth felt a lump in her throat. Seeing the huge Titan and this tiny kitten together, she suddenly felt insignificant compared to the vastness of Tartarus. This place had no respect for anything-good or bad, small or large, wise or unwise. Tartarus swallowed Titans and demigods and kittens indiscriminately. Bob knelt down and scooped up the cat. It fit perfectly in Bob's palm, but it decided to explore. It climbed the Titan's arm, made itself at home on his shoulder, and closed its eyes, purring like an earthmover. Suddenly its fur shimmered. In a flash, the kitten became a ghostly skeleton, as if it had stepped behind an X-ray machine. Then it was a regular kitten again."**_

" _ **Annabeth blinked. "Did you see-?"**_

" _ **Yeah." Percy knit his eyebrows. "Oh, man...I**_ **know** _ **that kitten. It's one of the ones from the Smithsonian."**_

Thalia and Grover both had looks of realization on their faces.

" _ **Annabeth tried to make sense of that. She'd never been to the Smithsonian with Percy… Then she recalled several years ago, when the Titan Atlas had captured her. Percy and Thalia had led a quest to rescue her. Along the way, they'd watched Atlas raise some skeleton warriors from dragon teeth in the Smithsonian Museum. According to Percy, the Titan's first attempt went wrong. He'd planted saber-toothed tiger teeth by mistake, and raised a batch of skeleton kittens from the soil."**_

" **That's** _ **one of them?" Annabeth asked. "How did it get here?"**_

" _ **Percy spread his hands helplessly. "Atlas told his servants to take the kittens away. Maybe they destroyed the cats and they were reborn in Tartarus? I don't know."**_

" _ **It's cute," Bob said, as the kitten sniffed his ear."**_

" _ **But is it safe?" Annabeth asked. The Titan scratched the kitten's chin. Annabeth didn't know if it was good idea, carrying around a cat grown from a prehistoric tooth; but obviously it didn't matter now. The Titan and the cat had bonded."**_

" _ **I will call him Small Bob," said Bob. "He is a good monster."**_

" _ **End of discussion. The Titan hefted his spear and they continued marching into the gloom."**_

"Okay, those two are _adorable._ Also, I didn't really realize that Titans could think of something as cute." Poseidon said.

" _ **Annabeth walked in a daze, trying not to think about pizza. To keep herself distracted, she watched Small Bob the kitten pacing across Bob's shoulders and purring, occasionally turning into a glowing kitty skeleton and then back to a calico fuzz-ball."**_

" _ **Here," Bob announced. He stopped so suddenly, Annabeth almost ran into him. Bob stared off to their left, as if deep in thought."**_

" _ **Is this the place?" Annabeth asked. "Where we go**_ **sideways?"**

" _ **Yes," Bob agreed. "Darker, then sideways."**_

"I've gotta say, those are some _A+_ GPS directions, right there." Hermes said. "And, I should know, being the god of travellers and all."

" _ **Annabeth couldn't tell if it was actually darker, but the air did seem colder and thicker, as if they'd stepped into a different microclimate. Again she was reminded of San Francisco, where you could walk from one neighborhood to the next and the temperature might drop ten degrees. She wondered if the Titans had built their palace on Mount Tamalpais because the Bay Area reminded them of Tartarus. What a depressing thought. Only Titans would see such a beautiful place as a potential outpost of the abyss-a hellish home away from home."**_

"You know, I never really thought about it like that, no wonder, they called it the Mountain of Despair." Calypso said.

" _ **Bob struck off to the left. They followed. The air definitely got colder. Annabeth pressed against Percy for warmth. He put his arm around her. It felt good being close to him, but she couldn't relax. They'd entered some sort of forest. Towering black trees soared into the gloom, perfectly round and bare of branches, like monstrous hair follicles. The ground was smooth and pale. With our luck, Annabeth thought, we're marching through the armpit of Tartarus."**_

" _ **Suddenly, her senses were on high alert, as if somebody had snapped a rubber band against the base of her neck. She rested her hand on the trunk of the nearest tree."**_

" _ **What is it?" Percy raised his sword."**_

" _ **Bob turned and looked back, confused. "We are stopping?"**_

" _ **Annabeth held up her hand for silence. She wasn't sure what had set her off. Nothing looked different. Then she realized the tree trunk was quivering. She wondered momentarily if it was the kitten's purr; but Small Bob had fallen asleep on Large Bob's shoulder. A few yards away, another tree shuddered."**_

"Oookay, so, the trees are moving. I think that it _might_ be time to get out of there, as fast as you can." Frank suggested.

" _ **Something's moving above us," Annabeth whispered. "Gather up."**_

"Of course, of course you guys don't run." Frank continued.

"What else did you expect, man?" Percy said.

" _ **Bob and Percy closed ranks with her, standing back to back. Annabeth strained her eyes, trying to see above them in the dark, but nothing moved. She had almost decided she was being paranoid when the first monster dropped to the ground only five feet away. Annabeth's first thought:**_ **The Furies."**

"No, my Furies stay up in the underworld with me, so it couldn't have been them." Hades said.

" _ **The creature looked almost exactly like one: a wrinkled hag with batlike wings, brass talons, and glowing red eyes. She wore a tattered dress of black silk, and her face was twisted and ravenous, like a demonic grandmother in the mood to kill. Bob grunted as another one dropped in front of him, and then another in front of Percy. Soon there were half a dozen surrounding them. More hissed in the trees above. They couldn't be Furies, then. There were only**_ **three** _ **of those, and these winged hags didn't carry whips. That didn't comfort Annabeth. The monsters' talons looked plenty dangerous."**_

" _ **What are you?" she demanded."**_

" **The** _ **arai,**_ **hissed a voice. The curses!"**

Hades and Nico's eyes widened. They knew of the curses.

"You guys should have listened to Frank, and ran while you could." Nico said.

"Yeah, I think it might be a little too late for that, now." Percy said.

" _ **Annabeth tried to locate the speaker, but none of the demons had moved their mouths. Their eyes looked dead; their expressions were frozen, like a puppet's. The voice simply floated overhead like a movie narrator's, as if a single mind controlled all the creatures."**_

" _ **What-what do you want?" Annabeth asked, trying to maintain a tone of confidence."**_

" _ **The voice cackled maliciously.**_ **To curse you, of course! To destroy you a thousand times in the name of Mother Night!"**

" _ **Only a thousand times?" Percy murmured. "Oh, good….I thought we were in trouble." The circle of demon ladies close in."**_

"What?! You can't end the chapter _there._ The action was just starting." Ares whined.

"Yeah! I wanted to see those so called curses get their butts kicked." Clarisse agreed.

Hephaestus decided to piss off Ares even more by delaying the violence and suggesting a break.

* * *

 _ **AN: The reason that people didn't have much of a reaction to Calypso and Clarisse show up, is because the way I see it, they've had so many weird things happen in their lives, that they've just learned to accept it quickly and move on. You know, I've been recommending a lot of long, dramatic stories recently. So, this time it's just a short fluffy fic called**_ **Haunted House by Bananannabeth.** _ **I'm going to try to get the next chapter done by the middle of next week at the latest. So, see you guys then.**_


	15. Cursed

_**Disclaimer: I don't own anything, Rick Riordan does.**_

 _ **AN: So, for the next few chapters, there isn't going to be as much interactions with everybody outside of the book. There will still be some, but I feel like, personally, that they'll ruin the intensity of everything that happens in this part. So, it'll just be focused more on the actual book for, I think, the next 4 chapters.**_

 _ **I'm sorry if you guys don't like that.**_

 _ **Death Fury:**_ _ **Oh, that's cool! I actually live on the east coast.**_

 _ **Prasad:**_ _ **That was kind of one of the reasons that I brought her here, but the way I see it, she didn't really do it on purpose, it was just a split-decision type thing. She was just feeling a little too lonely and angry for a second, but I don't think that she actually wanted anybody to get hurt. I feel like it was one of those things, where somebody gets angry and says that they hate their parents, but they don't really mean it. Anyways, I hope you have a good day, too.**_

 _ **Guest:**_ _ **Thank you!**_

* * *

Once everybody got settled again, Clarisse picked up the book and got right back into the action.

 _ **Percy was relieved when the demon grandmothers closed in for the kill.**_

Apollo teleported and put his hand on Percy's head.

"Ummm, Apollo, what are you doing?" Percy tentatively asked the god.

"I'm trying to make sure you didn't go insane." Apollo solemnly replied.

"Leave me alone, and just let me explain before you start calling me crazy.|

Apollo went back to his seat and everybody stared at him, waiting for an answer.

"I _meant_ in the book."

 _ **Sure, he was terrified. He didn't like the odds of three against several dozen. But at least he understood**_ **fighting.** _ **Wandering through the darkness, waiting to be attacked-that had been driving him crazy.**_

 _ **Besides, he and Annabeth had fought together many times. And now they had a Titan on their side.**_

" _ **Back off." Percy jabbed Riptide at the nearest shriveled hag, but she only sneered.**_

 **We are the** _ **arai, said that weird voice-over, like the entire forest was speaking.**_ **You cannot destroy us.** _ **Annabeth pressed against his shoulder.**_

" _ **Don't touch them," she warned. "They're the spirits of curses."**_

" _ **Bob doesn't like curses," Bob decided. The skeleton kitten Small Bob disappeared inside his coveralls. Smart cat. The Titan swept his broom in a wide arc, forcing the spirits back, but they came in again like the tide.**_

 **We serve the bitter and the defeated,** _ **said the**_ **arai. We serve the slain who prayed for vengeance with their final breath. We have many curses to share with you.**

 _ **The firewater in Percy's stomach started crawling up his throat. He wished Tartarus had better beverage options, or maybe a tree that dispensed antacid fruit.**_

" _ **I appreciate the offer," he said. "But my mom told me not to accept curses from strangers."**_

"Good, at least you actually listen to your mother, unlike _some_ beings I could mention." Hera sneered.

"Damn, the shade." Leo mumbled to himself.

 _ **The nearest demon lunged. Her claws extended like bony switchblades. Percy cut her in two, but as soon as she vaporized, the sides of his chest flared with pain. He stumbled back, clamping his hand to his rib cage. His fingers came away wet and red.**_

" _ **Percy, you're bleeding!" Annabeth cried, which was kind of obvious to him at that point. "Oh, gods, on**_ **both** _ **sides."**_

 _ **It was true. The left and right hems of his tattered shirt were sticky with blood, as if a javelin had run him through. Or an arrow….**_

 _ **Queasiness almost knocked him over.**_ **Vengeance. A curse from the slain.** _ **He flashed back to an encounter in Texas two years ago-a fight with a monstrous rancher who could only be killed if each of his three bodies was cut through simultaneously.**_

" _ **Geryon," Percy said. "This is how I killed him…."**_

 _ **The spirits bared their fangs. More**_ **arai** _ **leaped from the black trees, flapping their leathery wings.**_

 **Yes,** _ **they agreed.**_ **Feel the pain you inflicted upon Geryon. So many curses have been leveled at you, Percy Jackson. Which will you die from? Choose, or we will rip you apart!**

 _ **Somehow he stayed on his feet. The blood stopped spreading, but he still felt like he had a hot metal curtain rod sticking through his ribs. His sword arm was heavy and weak.**_

" _ **I don't understand," he muttered.**_

 _ **Bob's voice seemed to echo from the end of a long tunnel: "If you kill one, it gives you a curse."**_

" _ **But if we**_ **don't** _ **kill them…" Annabeth said.**_

" _ **They'll kill us anyway," Percy guessed.**_

 **Choose!** _ **the**_ **arai** _ **cried.**_ **Will you be crushed like Kampê? Or disintegrated like the young telkhines you slaughtered under Mount St. Helens? You have spread so much death and suffering, Percy Jackson. Let us repay you!**

 _ **The winged hags pressed in, their breath sour, their eyes burning with hatred. They looked like Furies, but Percy decided these things were even worse. At least the three Furies were under the control of Hades. These things were wild, and they just kept multiplying. If they really embodied the dying curses of every enemy Percy had ever destroyed…then Percy was in serious trouble. He'd faced a**_ **lot** _ **of enemies.**_

 _ **One of the demons lunged at Annabeth. Instinctively, she dodged. She brought her rock down on the old lady's head and broke her into dust. It wasn't like Annabeth had a choice. Percy would've done the same thing. But instantly Annabeth dropped her rock and cried in alarm.**_

" _ **I can't see!" She touched her face, looking around wildly. Her eyes were pure white. Percy ran to her side as the**_ **arai** _ **cackled.**_

 **Polyphemus cursed you when you tricked him with your invisibility in the Sea of Monsters. You called yourself Nobody. He could not see you. Now you will not see** _ **your**_ **attackers.**

" _ **I've got you,"**_ _ **Percy promised. He put his arm around Annabeth, but as the**_ **arai** _ **advanced, he didn't how he could protect either of them. A dozen demons leaped from every direction, but Bob yelled, "SWEEP!"**_

 _ **His broom whooshed over Percy's head. The entire**_ **arai** _ **offensive line toppled backward like bowling pins. More surged forward. Bob whacked one over the head and speared another, blasting them to dust. The others backed away. Percy held his breath, waiting for their Titan friend to be laid low with some terrible curse, but Bob seemed fine-a massive silvery bodyguard keeping death at bay with the world's most terrifying cleaning implement.**_

"Um, why didn't he just get cursed? I would think a Titan formerly known as the "Piercer," he would have a ton of curses." Piper asked.

"That was my fault." Percy said vaguely.

" _ **Bob, you okay?" Percy asked. "No curses?"**_

" _ **No curses for Bob!" Bob agreed.**_

 _ **The**_ **arai** _ **snarled and circled, eyeing the broom.**_ **The Titan is already cursed. Why should we torture him further? You, Percy Jackson, have already destroyed his memory.**

 _ **Bob's spearhead dipped.**_

" _ **Bob, don't listen to them," Annabeth said. "They're evil!"**_

 _ **Time slowed. Percy wondered if the spirit of Kronos was somewhere nearby, swirling in the darkness, enjoying this moment so much that he wanted it to last forever. Percy felt exactly like he had at twelve years old, battling Ares on that beach in Los Angeles, when the shadow of the Titan lord had first passed over him.**_

 _ **Bob turned. His wild white hair looked like an exploded halo. "My memory… It was you?"**_

 **Curse him, Titan!** _ **the**_ **arai** _ **urged, their red eyes gleaming.**_ **Add to our numbers!**

 _ **Percy's heart pressed against his spine. "Bob, it's a long story. I didn't want you to be my enemy. I tried to make you a friend."**_

 **By stealing your life,** _ **the**_ **arai** _ **said.**_ **Leaving you in the palace of Hades to scrub floors!**

 _ **Annabeth gripped Percy's hand. "Which way?" she whispered. "If we have to run?"**_

 _ **He understood. If Bob wouldn't protect them, their only chance was to run-but that wasn't any chance at all.**_

" _ **Bob, listen," he tried again, "the**_ **arai** _ **want you to get angry. They spawn from bitter thoughts. Don't give them what they want. We**_ **are** _ **your friends."**_

 _ **Even as he said it, Percy felt like a liar. He'd left Bob in the Underworld and hadn't given him a thought since. What made them friends? The fact that Percy needed him now? Percy always hated it when the gods used him for their errands. Now Percy was treating Bob the same way.**_

 **You see his face?** _ **the**_ **arai** _ **growled.**_ **The boy cannot even convince himself. Did he visit you, after he stole your memory?**

" _ **No," Bob murmured. His lower lip quivered. "The other one did."**_

 _ **Percy's thoughts moved sluggishly. "The other one?"**_

" _ **Nico." Bob scowled at him, his eyes full of hurt. "Nico visited. Told me about Percy. Said Percy was good. Said he was a friend.**_ **That** _ **is why Bob helped."**_

" _ **But…" Percy's voice disintegrated like someone had hit it with a Celestial bronze blade. He'd never felt so low and dishonorable, so unworthy of having a friend. The**_ **arai** _ **attacked, and this time Bob did not stop them.**_

"Keep reading, right now! I need to know what happens next." Zeus commanded.

* * *

 _ **AN: I'm gonna recommend**_ **Blue Lily Tattoo by SomethingMoreCreative.** _ **It's actually not that short, but it is fluffy as hell.I actually already have the next two chapters almost finished, so, they might be updated a bit quicker. See you, soon.**_


	16. Abandoned

_**Disclaimer: I don't own anything, Rick Riordan does.**_

 _ **AN:**_ _ **Wow, I never realized how short this chapter actually is, I'll try to get the next chapter out by Saturday at the latest.**_

 _ **Hidden-in-Moonlight:**_ _ **Thank you! And I will definitely look into how to do that.**_

 _ **Meistar:**_ _ **Please don't die, here's some more.**_

 _ **DeadlyHuggles:**_ _ **Thank you!**_

 _ **Prasad:**_ _ **I am definitely not stopping now.**_

 _ **Aussiebornwriter:**_ _ **Here you go!**_

* * *

Clarisse immediately continued reading.

" _ **Left!" Percy dragged Annabeth, slicing through the**_ **arai** _ **to clear a path. He probably brought down a dozen curses on himself, but he didn't feel them right away, so he kept running. The pain in his chest flared with every step. He wove between the trees, leading Annabeth at a full sprint despite her blindness. Percy realized how much she trusted him to get her out of this. He couldn't let her down, yet how could he save her? And if she was permanently blind... No. He suppressed a surge of panic. He would figure out how to cure her later. First they had to escape. Leathery wings beat the air above them. Angry hissing and the scuttling of clawed feet told him the demons were at their backs. As they ran past one of the black trees, he slashed his sword across the trunk. He heard it topple, followed by the satisfying crunch of several dozen**_ **arai** _ **as they were smashed flat.**_

 **If a tree falls in the forest and crushes a demon, does the tree get cursed?**

"Okay, I think we can all agree that now is not the time for that!" Poseidon, all but screamed.

 _ **Percy slashed down another trunk, then another. It bought them a few seconds, but not enough. Suddenly the darkness in front of them became thicker. Percy realized what it meant just in time. He grabbed Annabeth right before they both charged off the side of the cliff.**_

" _ **What?" she cried. "What is it?"**_

" _ **Cliff," he gasped. "Big cliff."**_

" _ **Which way, then?"**_

 _ **Percy couldn't see how far the cliff dropped. It could be ten feet or a thousand. There was no telling what was at the bottom. They could jump and hope for the best, but he doubted "the best" ever happened in Tartarus. So, two options: right or left, following the edge. He was about to choose randomly when a winged demon descended in front of him, hovering over the void on her bat wings, just out of sword reach.**_

 **Did you have a nice walk?** _ **asked the collective voice, echoing all around them.**_

 _ **Percy turned. The**_ **arai** _ **poured out of the woods, making a crescent around them. One grabbed Annabeth's arm. Annabeth wailed in rage, judo-flipping the monster and dropping on its neck, putting her whole body weight into an elbow strike that would've made any pro wrestler proud. The demon dissolved, but when Annabeth got to her feet, she looked stunned and afraid as well as blind.**_

" _ **Percy?" she called, panic creeping into her voice.**_

" _ **I'm right here."**_

 _ **He tried to put his hand on her shoulder, but she wasn't standing where he thought. He tried again, only to find she was several feet farther away. It was like trying to grab something in a tank of water, with the light shifting the image away.**_

" _ **Percy!" Annabeth's voice cracked. "Why did you leave me?"**_

" _ **I didn't!" He turned on the**_ **arai,** _ **his arms shaking with anger. "What did you do to her?"**_

 **We did nothing,** _ **the demons said.**_ **Your beloved has unleashed a special curse-a bitter thought from someone you abandoned. You punished an innocent soul by leaving her in her solitude. Now her most hateful wish has come to pass: Annabeth feels her despair. She, too, will perish alone and abandoned.**

" _ **Percy?" Annabeth spread her arms, trying to find him. The**_ **arai** _ **backed up, letting her stumble blindly through their ranks.**_

" _ **Who did I abandon?" Percy demanded. "I never-"**_

 _ **Suddenly his stomach felt like it had dropped off the cliff. The words rang in his head:**_ **An innocent soul. Alone and abandoned.** _ **He remembered an island, a cave lit with soft glowing crystals, a dinner table on the beach tended by invisible air spirits.**_

"What? They're not talking about what I think they're talking about, right?" Calypso asked, getting more and more scared.

" _ **She wouldn't," he mumbled. "She'd never curse me."**_

"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry, I never meant to hurt anyone." Calypso's voice broke as she spoke.

 _ **The eyes of the demons blurred together like their voices. Percy's sides throbbed. The pain in his chest was worse, as if someone were slowly twisting a dagger. Annabeth wandered among the demons, desperately calling his name. Percy longed to run to her, but he knew the**_ **arai** _ **wouldn't allow it. The only reason they hadn't killed her yet was that they were enjoying her misery. Percy clenched his jaw. He didn't care how many curses he suffered. He had to keep these leathery old hags focused on him and protect Annabeth as long as he could. He yelled in fury and attacked them all.**_

"Good! Give them what they deserve, destroy them!" Ares bellowed.

"Here, I'm sure you'll like this part, being one of my brothers from the Roman side." Clarisse said, while shoving the book into Frank's hands.

* * *

 _ **AN: Read**_ **any** _ **of the stories from**_ **BlueFood02.** _ **They're all super fluffy and adorable. I'll see you guys soon.**_


	17. Dying

_**Disclaimer: I don't own anything, Rick Riordan does.**_

 _ **AN: Hey, I'm back, since this is a little bit late and school starts tomorrow, I'm putting up two chapters to make up for it.**_

 _ **Prasad:**_ _ **Actually, I think that Calypso actually cursed Annabeth, because while Percy was on the island, he would say her name a lot in his sleep and Calypso knew that Annabeth was one of the main reasons he left. Also, I feel like Percy thought that Calypso would never do anything like that, was because, when he met her, she was super kind and sweet, but him leaving caused Calypso to become a little bit bitter and she ended up cursing Annabeth. I really hope that makes sense.**_

 _ **Percabeth824:**_ _ **Thank you!**_

 _ **DeadlyHuggles:**_ _ **Holy shit, that just perfectly explains the exact way I think of it. Thank you for that amazing and partly heartbreaking explanation. And, No, I can't blame her for something like that, she was just hurt and got a little bit too angry for a moment.**_

 _ **Adaline:**_ _ **Thank you! I want them to have a discussion too, and I think that I'm going to try and have it happen once everybody currently in hell gets a chance to rest.**_

 _ **Aussiebornwriter:**_ _ **I can understand being mad at her, but as I said above, I could understand why she did it, so I'm sorry, they're probably not going to mad at her, they will definitely talk about it though. And, Thank you!**_

 _ **Meistar:**_ _ **I have been kind of ignoring the gods, so we'll see what happens with that… But, the reason it's a bit more jokey, is because I was trying to balance out how serious and dark the actual book got, but also because I'm not super great at writing serious scenes and you're right, they did change a lot. Here's some more.**_

 _ **KriKri:**_ _ **That's completely fine, I hope your holiday went well. And lucky me, I get to start school tomorrow (and yes, I am american). Seriously, one of my favorite parts about the reviews are just making small talk with you guys.**_

 _ **Makhaira:**_ _ **Thank you so much!**_

* * *

Frank began reading, too worried about what happened next to properly hear what Clarisse said to him.

 _ **For one exciting minute, Percy felt like he was winning. Riptide cut through the**_ **arai** _ **as though they were made of powdered sugar. One panicked and ran face-first into a tree. Another screeched and tried to fly away, but Percy sliced off her wings and sent her spiraling into the chasm. Each time a demon disintegrated, Percy felt a heavier sense of dread as another curse settled on him. Some were harsh and painful: a stabbing in the gut, a burning sensation like he was being blasted by a blowtorch. Some were subtle: a chill in the blood, an uncontrollable tic in his right eye. Seriously, who curses you with their dying breath and says:**_ **I hope your eye twitches!**

 _ **Percy knew that he'd killed a lot of monsters, but he'd never really thought about it from the monsters' point of view. Now all their pain and anger and bitterness poured over him, sapping his strength. The**_ **arai** _ **just kept coming. For every one he cut down, six more seemed to appear. His sword arm grew tired. His body ached, and his vision blurred. He tried to make his way toward Annabeth, but she was just out of reach, calling his name as she wandered among the demons. As Percy blundered toward her, a demon pounced and sank its teeth into his thigh. Percy roared. He sliced the demon to dust, but immediately fell to his knees. His mouth burned worse than when he had swallowed the firewater of the Phlegethon. He doubled over, shuddering and retching, as a dozen fiery snakes seemed to work their way down his esophagus.**_

 **You have chosen,** _ **said the voice of the**_ **arai, the curse of Phineas….an excellent painful death.** _ **Percy tried to speak. His tongue felt like it was being microwaved. He remembered the old blind king who had chased harpies through Portland with a WeedWacker. Percy had challenged him to a contest, and the loser had drunk a deadly vial of gorgon's blood. Percy didn't remember the old blind man muttering a final curse, but as Phineas dissolved and returned to the Underworld, he probably hadn't wished Percy a long and happy life. After Percy's victory then, Gaea had warned him:**_ **Do not press your luck. When your death comes, I promise it will be much more painful than gorgon's blood.**

 _ **Now he was in Tartarus, dying from gorgon's blood plus a dozen other agonizing curses, while he watched his girlfriend stumble around, helpless and blind and believing he'd abandoned her. He clutched his sword. His knuckles started to steam. White smoke curled off his forearms. I won't die like this, he thought. Not only because it was painful and insultingly lame, but because Annabeth needed him. Once he was dead, the demons would turn their attention to her. He couldn't leave her alone. The**_ **arai** _ **clustered around him, snickering and hissing.**_ **His head will erupt first,** _ **the voice speculated.**_

"Nah, I bet it's going to be the legs first." Ares laughed maniacally.

 **No,** _ **the voice answered itself from another direction.**_ **He will combust all at once.**

"Ooh, that's even better, yeah, let's have that happen instead."

 _ **They were placing bets on how he would die... what sort of scorch mark he would leave on the ground. "Bob," he croaked. "I need you."**_

 _ **A hopeless plea. He could barely hear himself. Why should Bob answer his call twice? The Titan knew the truth now. Percy was no friend. He raised his eyes one last time. His surroundings seemed to flicker. The sky boiled and the ground blistered. Percy realized that what he**_ **saw** _ **of Tartarus was only a watered-down version of its true horror-only what his demigod brain could handle. The worst of it was veiled, the same way the Mist veiled monsters from mortal sight. Now as Percy died, he began to see the truth. The air was the breath of Tartarus. All these monsters were just blood cells circulating through his body. Everything Percy saw was a dream in the mind of the dark god of the pit. This must have been the way**_ **Nico** _ **had seen Tartarus, and it had almost destroyed his sanity. Nico...one of the many people Percy hadn't treated well enough. He and Annabeth had only made it this far through Tartarus because Nico di Angelo had behaved like Bob's**_ **true** _ **friend.**_

"I never got a chance to properly thank you for that, you saved our lives. We can never thank you enough for that." Percy said gratefully.

 **You see the horror of the pit?** _ **The**_ **arai** _ **said soothingly.**_ **Give up, Percy Jackson. Isn't death better than enduring this place?**

" _ **I'm sorry," Percy murmured.**_

 **He apologizes!** _ **the**_ **arai** _ **shrieked with delight.**_ **He regrets his failed life, his crimes against the children of Tartarus!**

" **No," Percy said. "I'm sorry, Bob, I should've been honest with you. Please….forgive me. Protect Annabeth."**

 _ **He didn't expect Bob to hear him or care, but it felt right to clear his conscience. He couldn't blame anyone else for his troubles. Not the gods. Not Bob. He couldn't even blame Calypso, the girl he'd left alone on that island. Maybe she'd turned bitter and cursed Percy's girlfriend out of despair. Still…Percy should have followed up with Calypso, made sure the gods sprang her from her exile on Ogygia like they'd promised. He hadn't treated her any better than he'd treated Bob.**_

"That wasn't your fault, Percy. If anything, it was the gods' fault for not telling me that I was free to go." Calypso finished glaring up at the gods.

"I still should have made sure that somebody did actually free you, because the gods are pretty well known for breaking their promises. I mean, me, Thalia, and Jason _are_ the result of a broken promise, so…"

 _ **He hadn't even thought much about her, though her moonlace plant still bloomed in his mom's window box. It took all his remaining effort, but he got to his feet. Steam rose from his whole body. His legs shook. His insides churned like a volcano. At least Percy could go out fighting. He raised Riptide. But before he could strike, all the**_ **arai** _ **in front of him exploded into dust.**_

"Oh no, what is it now?" Aphrodite whined.

"Hey, you never know, it could be something good for once." Jason said.

"With our luck? You're funny, Sparky." Piper said.

* * *

 _ **AN: So, I think that only one or two things are going to be said in the next chapter so that I can have both uploaded today. Also, I'm going to save the recommendation for the next chapter.**_


	18. Decisions

_**Disclaimer: I don't own anything, Rick Riordan does.**_

 _ **AN: Hey, I'm back, since this is a little bit late and school starts tomorrow, I'm putting up two chapters to make up for it.**_

* * *

"Pass the book over here, Frank." Leo said, gesturing for the book.

 _ **Bob seriously knew how to use a broom.**_

"See, what did I say, it's actually something good, it was bound to happen eventually." Jason said.

 _ **He slashed back and forth, destroying the demons one after the other while Small Bob the kitten sat on his shoulder, arching and hissing. In a matter of seconds, the**_ **arai** _ **were gone. Most had been vaporized. The smart ones had flown off into the darkness, shrieking in terror. Percy wanted to thank the Titan, but his voice wouldn't work. His legs buckled. His ears rang. Through a red glow of pain, he saw Annabeth a few yards away, wandering blindly toward the edge of the cliff.**_

" _ **Uh!" Percy grunted.**_

 _ **Bob followed his gaze. He bounded toward Annabeth and scooped her up. She yelled and kicked, pummeling Bob's gut, but Bob didn't seem to care. He carried her over to Percy and put her down gently.**_

 _ **The Titan touched her forehead. "Owie."**_

 _ **Annabeth stopped fighting. Her eyes cleared. "Where-what-?"**_

 _ **She saw Percy, and a series of expressions flashed across her face-relief, joy, shock, horror. "What's wrong with him?" she cried. "What happened?"**_

 _ **She cradled his shoulders and wept into his scalp. Percy wanted to tell her it was okay, but of course it wasn't. He couldn't even feel his body anymore. His consciousness was like a small helium balloon, loosely tied to the top of his head. It had no weight, no strength. It just kept expanding, getting lighter and lighter. He knew that soon it would either burst or the string would break, and his life would float away. Annabeth took his face in her hands. She kissed him and tried to wipe the dust and sweat from his eyes. Bob loomed over them, his broom planted like a flag. His face was unreadable, luminously white in the dark.**_

" _ **Lots of curses," Bob said. "Percy has done bad things to monsters."**_

" _ **Can you fix him?" Annabeth pleaded. "Like you did with my blindness? Fix**_ **Percy!"**

 _ **Bob frowned. He picked at the name on his uniform like it was a scab. Annabeth tried again. "Bob-"**_

" _ **Iapetus," Bob said, his voice was a low rumble. "Before Bob. It was Iapetus."**_

"Please don't tell me Bob became an enemy, I don't think I could handle that." Hazel said.

 _ **The air was absolutely still. Percy felt helpless, barely connected to the world.**_

" _ **I like Bob better." Annabeth's voice was surprisingly calm. "Which do you like?"**_

 _ **The Titan regarded her with his pure silver eyes. "I do not know anymore."**_

 _ **He crouched next to her and studied Percy. Bob's face looked haggard and careworn, as if he suddenly felt the weight of all his centuries.**_

" _ **I promised," he murmured. "Nico asked me to help. I do not thing Iapetus or Bob likes breaking promises." He touched Percy's forehead.**_

" _ **Owie," the Titan murmured. "Very big owie."**_

 _ **Percy sank into his body. The ringing in his ears faded. His vision cleared. He still felt like he had swallowed a deep fryer. His insides bubbled. He could sense that the poison had only been slowed, not removed. But he was alive. He tried to meet Bob's eyes, to express his gratitude. His head lolled against his chest.**_

" _ **Bob cannot cure this," Bob said. "Too much poison. Too many curses piled up."**_

 _ **Annabeth hugged Percy's shoulders. He wanted to say:**_ **I can feel that now. Ow. Too tight.**

" _ **What can we do, Bob?" Annabeth asked. "Is there water anywhere? Water might heal him."**_

" _ **No water," Bob said. "Tartarus is bad."**_

 **I noticed,** _ **Percy wanted to yell.**_

 _ **At least the Titan called himself**_ **Bob.** _ **Even if he blamed Percy for taking his memory, maybe he would help Annabeth if Percy didn't make it.**_

" _ **No," Annabeth insisted. "No, there**_ **has** _ **to be a way.**_ **Something** _ **to heal him."**_

 _ **Bob placed his hand on Percy's chest. A cold tingle like eucalyptus oil spread across his sternum, but as soon as Bob lifted his hand, the relief stopped. Percy's lungs felt as hot as lava again.**_

"You know, I've been meaning to ask, how can Bob heal things, is that just a power of everything more powerful than humans, or is that just one of Iapetus's powers?"

"I'm pretty sure it's just a basic power for most of the gods and Titans." Athena said.

" _ **Tartarus kills demigods," Bob said. "It heals monsters, but you do not belong. Tartarus will not heal Percy. The pit hates your kind."**_

" _ **I don't care," Annabeth said. "Even here, there**_ **has** _ **to be someplace he can rest, some kind of cure he can take. Maybe back at the altar of Hermes, or-"**_

 _ **In the distance, a deep voice bellowed-a voice that Percy recognized, unfortunately.**_

" _ **I SMELL HIM!" roared the giant. "BEWARE, SON OF POSEIDON! I COME FOR YOU!"**_

" _ **Polybotes," Bob said. "He hates Poseidon and his children. He is very close now."**_

 _ **Annabeth struggled to get Percy to his feet. He hated making her work so hard, but he felt like a sack of billiard balls. Even with Annabeth supporting almost all his weight, he could barely stand.**_

" _ **Bob, I'm going on, with or without you," she said. "Will you help?"**_

 _ **The kitten Small Bob mewed and began to purr, rubbing against Bob's chin. Bob looked at Percy, and Percy wished he could read the Titan's expression. Was he angry, or just thoughtful? Was he planning revenge, or was he just feeling hurt and because Percy had lied about being his friend?**_

" _ **There is one place," Bob said at last. "There is a giant who might know what to do."**_

 _ **Annabeth almost dropped Percy. "A giant. Uh, Bob, giants are bad."**_

" _ **One is good," Bob insisted. "Trust me, and I will take you...unless Polybotes and the others catch us first."**_

"Oh, thank gods, he might help you, at the very least, he won't try to kill you on sight." Poseidon sighed in relief.

"Wait, _might_ help?" Thalia asked.

Poseidon didn't say anything else.

* * *

 _ **AN: In the next chapter, we'll go back to the regular amount of reactions from everybody. This time, it's gonna be**_ **Hey Tomorrow, Fuck You and Your Friend Yesterday by thnxfrthmmrs.** _ **I chose that one purely because of the title, it's pretty dark, if I remember correctly. See you guys soon, I don't really know**_ **how** _ **soon, since school does start tomorrow.**_


	19. Traveling and Promises

_**Disclaimer: I don't own anything, Rick Riordan does.**_

 _ **AN: So…. I'm**_ **not** _ **dead. I just got super busy with my senior year. But, we're back with a longer chapter, a.k.a. Two chapters in one. It's the least I can do for that long ass break.**_

 _ **Makhaira:**_ _ **I agree with you 100%. And you read it anyways, because you know exactly how amazing that part is.**_

 _ **Prasad:**_ _ **Thank you! I am going to have a chapter like that in the future, but everybody's view on Tartarus are coming out through little comments here and there.**_

 _ **Percabeth824:**_ _ **Thank you!**_

 _ **AnotherAwkwardFangirl:**_ _ **Holy shit, thank you so much!**_

 _ **goldenlynx16:**_ _ **So, this is only Percy and Annabeth's time in Tartarus, even though I'd love to do something with the Cupid scene, I'm gonna stick with being in hell. Also, the story is set a few weeks after BoO ends, but Leo already came back from the dead with Calypso and everybody's made up with them, and Solangelo does exist, yes. So, basically, it's a few weeks after the final battle but events that happened in the future in Canon are happening right now.**_

 _ **Meistar:**_ _ **You are most definitely right, we are going to see a little bit more of that over the next few chapters.**_

 _ **Death Fury:**_ _ **Thank you!**_

 _ **DeadlyHuggles:**_ _ **The thing is, I don't believe that Bob died, I like to believe that he found some way to survive along with Damasen and Small Bob.**_

 _ **Furious Pugluva:**_ _ **Okay, two things, one, thank you, and two, it took me a second to realize what your name was, and I've got to say, I love it.**_

 _ **Bluebubbles2554:**_ _ **Thank you! Here's some more.**_

 _ **KriKri:**_ _ **I know exactly what you mean and there is about to be more input once again. I hope everything went well with school and everything. Also, I just want you to know, I got the notification for your review checking in on me (which is so nice of you, thank you) while I was in the middle of writing this chapter.**_

* * *

"Man, it feels like we've been here for weeks. I mean, isn't time stopped for us, it should feel like it's going much faster." Piper complained quietly.

Everybody was taking a quick 10 minute break in between chapters, because they needed some time to calm down and relax after all of the emotions caused by the last few chapters.

The last time Calypso had seen Leo was a few days before he appeared at Olympus, so they were quietly catching up with each other (Leo was showing her some of the things he had built while they had been reading).

"Can we get back to reading, now? I want to know more about this "good giant" that _might_ help Percy." Jason said.

"Sure, just hand me the book, Leo." Apollo called out, stopping the mini conversations happening throughout the room.

 _ **Losing her sight had been bad enough. Being isolated from Percy had been horrible. But now that she could see again, watching him die slowly from gorgon's blood poison and being unable to do anything about it-that was the worst curse of all. Bob slung Percy over his shoulder like a bag of sports equipment while the skeleton kitten Small Bob curled up on Percy's back and purred. Bob lumbered along at a fast pace, even for a titan, which made it almost impossible for Annabeth to keep up. Her lungs rattled. Her skin had started to blister again. She probably needed another drink of firewater, but they'd left the River Phlegethon behind. Her body was so sore and battered that she'd forgotten what it was like to**_ **not** _ **to be in pain.**_

" _ **How much longer?" she wheezed.**_

" _ **Almost too long." Bob called back. "But maybe not."**_

"Sounds promising." Nico said sarcastically.

 _ **Very helpful, Annabeth thought, but she was too winded to say it. The landscape changed again. They were still going downhill, which should have made traveling easier; but the ground sloped at just the wrong angle-too steep to jog, too treacherous to let her guard down even for a moment. The surface was sometimes loose gravel, sometimes patches of slime. Annabeth stepped around random bristles sharp enough to impale her foot, and clusters of... well, not rocks exactly. More like warts the size of watermelons. If Annabeth had to guess (and she didn't want to) she supposed Bob was leading her down the length of Tartarus's large intestine. The air got thicker and stank of sewage.**_

"I really hope that Tartarus isn't actually alive, because I'm just picturing him waking up in a bed with you guys still inside of him and that is terrifying." Piper groaned.

 _ **The darkness maybe wasn't quite as intense, but she could only see Bob because of the glint of his white hair and the point of his spear. She noticed he hadn't retracted the spearhead on his broom since their fight with the**_ **arai.** _ **That didn't reassure her. Percy flopped around, causing the kitten to readjust his nest in the small of Percy's back. Occasionally Percy would groan in pain, and Annabeth felt like a fist was squeezing her heart. She flashed back to her tea party with Piper, Hazel, and Aphrodite in Charleston. Gods, that seemed so long ago. Aphrodite had sighed and waxed nostalgic about the good old days of the Civil War-how love and war always went hand in hand. Aphrodite had gestured proudly to Annabeth, using her as an example for the other girls:**_ **I once promised to make** _ **her**_ **love life interesting. And didn't I?**

"You better be done, making our love life _interesting._ " Annabeth threatened mildly.

"Oh, I am done with that," Aphrodite told everybody. Then, she whispered to herself, "For now."

 _ **Annabeth had wanted to throttle the goddess of love. She'd had more than her share of**_ **interesting.** _ **Now Annabeth was holding out for a happy ending. Surely that was possible, no matter what the legends said about tragic heroes. There had to be exceptions, right?**_

"I mean, I was _named_ after one of the exceptions, so it shouldn't be too hard right?"

"Right?" Percy said when nobody answered him the first time, and still wasn't getting an answer.

 _ **If suffering led to reward, then Percy and she deserved the grand prize. She thought about Percy's daydream of New Rome-the two of them settling down there, going to college together. At first, the idea of living among the Romans had appalled her. She had resented them for taking Percy away from her. Now she would accept that offer gladly.**_

 _ **If only they survived this. If only Reyna had gotten her message. If only a million other long shots paid off.**_

 **Stop it,** _ **she chided herself. She had to concentrate on the present, putting one foot in front of the other, taking this downhill intestinal hike one giant wart at a time. Her knees felt warm and wobbly, like wire hangers bent to the point of snapping. Percy groaned and muttered something she couldn't make out.**_

 _ **Bob stopped suddenly. "Look."**_

 _ **Ahead in the gloom, the terrain leveled out into a black swamp. Sulfur-yellow mist hung in the air. Even without sunlight, there were actual plants-clumps of reeds, scrawny leafless trees, even a few sickly-looking flowers blooming in the muck. Mossy trails wound between bubbling tar pits. Directly in front of Annabeth, sunk into the bog, were footprints the size of trash-can lids, with long, pointed toes.**_

 _ **Sadly, Annabeth was pretty sure she knew what had made them. "Drakon?"**_

" _ **Yes." Bob grinned at her. "That is good!"**_

"Uh...Since when is a drakon good news?" Frank asked.

"Apparently, since right now." Hazel replied.

" _ **Uh...why?"**_

" _ **Because we are close."**_

 _ **Bob marched into the swamp.**_

 _ **Annabeth wanted to scream. She hated being at the mercy of a Titan-especially one who was slowly recovering his memory and bringing them to see a "good" giant. She hated forging through a swamp that was obviously the stomping ground of a drakon. But Bob had Percy. If she hesitated, she would lose them in the dark. She hurried after him, hopping from moss patch to moss patch and praying to Athena that she didn't fall in a sinkhole. At least the terrain forced Bob to go slower. Once Annabeth caught up, she could walk right behind him and keep an eye on Percy, who was mumbling deliriously, his forehead dangerously hot. Several times he muttered**_ **Annabeth,** _ **and she fought back a sob. The kitten just purred louder and snuggled up.**_

"So, not only do you drool in your sleep, you also talk during it. That's very good to know, Seaweed Brain." Annabeth smirked.

"You're one to talk, since when am I the only one of us to talk in our sleep, Wise Girl." Percy said gesturing in between them.

 _ **Finally the yellow mist parted, revealing a muddy clearing like an island in the muck. The ground was dotted with stunted trees and wart mounds. In the center loomed a large, domed hut made of bones and greenish leather. Smoke rose from a hole in the top. The entrance was covered with curtains of scaly reptile skin, and flanking the entrance, two torches made from colossal femur bones burned bright yellow.**_

 _ **What really caught Annabeth's attention was the drakon skull. Fifty yards into the clearing, about halfway to the hut, a massive oak tree jutted from the ground at a forty-five-degree angle. The jaws of a drakon skull encircled the trunk, as if the oak tree were the dead monster's tongue.**_

"Inviting." Thalia remarked.

" _ **Yes," Bob murmured. "This is very good."**_

 _ **Nothing about this place felt good to Annabeth. Before she could protest, Small Bob arched his back and hissed. Behind them, a mighty roar echoed through the swamp-a sound Annabeth had last heard in the Battle of Manhattan. She turned and saw the drakon charging toward them.**_

"That's the end of the chapter." Apollo said, getting ready to put the book down.

"Um, no it's not." Zeus said. "Keep reading."

"But that's where the chapter ends." Apollo said slowly.

"And I told you to keep reading." Zeus commanded, like he wasn't interested. It's not like anybody knew that he actually only wanted Apollo to keep reading because the last chapter ended on a cliffhanger and he just _had_ to know more. Shut up, they don't know.

"All right, I'll keep reading, even though I was only going to read one chapter and now I'm being forced to read two." Apollo muttered.

Zeus just started glaring at him. Apollo decided that it was time to start reading.

 _ **The most insulting part?**_

 _ **The drakon was easily the most beautiful thing Annabeth had seen since she had fallen into Tartarus. Its hide was dappled green and yellow, like sunlight through a forest canopy. Its reptilian eyes were Annabeth's favorite shade of sea green (just like Percy's). When its frills unfurled around its head, Annabeth couldn't help but think what a regal and amazing monster it was that was about to kill her. It was easily as long as a subway train. Its massive talons dug into mud as it pulled itself forward, its tail whipping from side to side. The drakon hissed, spitting jets of green poison that smoked on the mossy ground and set tar pits on fire, filling the air with the scent of fresh pine and ginger. The monster even**_ **smelled** _ **good. Like most drakons, it was wingless, longer, and more snakelike than a dragon, and it looked hungry.**_

"Pft. The one in Manhattan was worse. You'll be fine." Clarisse said, remembering how she absolutely _destroyed_ the drakon during the Battle of Manhattan.

"Uh...thanks?" Annabeth said.

" _ **Bob," Annabeth said, "what are we facing here?"**_

" _ **Maeonian Drakon," Bob said. "From Maeonia."**_

"Really? Because, I just had _no_ idea that the Maeonian Drakon came from Maeonia." Leo stated.

 _ **More helpful information. Annabeth would've Bob upside the head with his own broom if she could lift it.**_

" _ **Any way we can kill it?"**_

" _ **Us?" Bob said. "No."**_

 _ **The drakon roared as if to accentuate the point, filling the air with more pine-ginger poison, which would have made an excellent car-freshener scent.**_

" _ **Get Percy to safety," Annabeth said. "I'll distract it."**_

"And how, exactly, do you plan to do that, Wise Girl?"

 _ **She had no idea how she would do that…**_

"Shut up, Seaweed Brain."

 _ **...but it was her only choice. She couldn't let Percy die-not if she still had the strength to stand.**_

" _ **You don't have to," Bob said. "Any minute-"**_

" _ **ROOOOOAAAR!"**_

 _ **Annabeth turned as the giant emerged from his hut. He was about twenty feet tall-typical giant height-with a humanoid upper body, and scaly reptilian legs, like a bipedal dinosaur. He held no weapon. Instead of armor, he wore only a shirt stitched together from sheep hides and green-spotted leather. His skin was cherry red; his beard and hair the color of iron rust, braided with tufts of grass, leaves, and swamp flowers.**_

"Bob took you to see _him_? It's risky but there's a good chance of it paying off." Artemis commented.

"Took them to see who?" Jason asked.

"You'll see." Annabeth said, annoying Jason.

 _ **He shouted in challenge, but thankfully he wasn't looking at Annabeth. Bob pulled her out of the way as the giant stormed toward the drakon. They clashed like some sort of weird Christmas combat scene-the red versus the green. The drakon spewed poison. The giant lunged to one side. He grabbed the oak tree and pulled it from the ground, roots and all. The old skull crumbled to dust as the giant hefted the tree like a baseball bat. The drakon's tail lashed around the giant's waist, dragging him closer to its gnashing teeth. But as soon as the giant was in range, he shoved the tree straight down the monster's throat. Annabeth hoped she never had to see such a gruesome scene again. The tree pierced the drakon's gullet and impaled it to the ground. The roots began to move, digging deeper as they touched the earth, anchoring the oak until it looked like it had stood in that spot for centuries. The drakon shook and thrashed, but it was pinned fast. The giant brought his fist down on the drakon's neck. CRACK. The monster went limp. It began to dissolve, leaving only scraps of bone, meat, hide, and a new drakon skull whose open jaws ringed the oak tree.**_

 _ **Bob grunted. "Good one."**_

 _ **The kitten purred in agreement and started cleaning his paws. The giant kicked at the drakon's remains, examining them critically.**_

" _ **No good bones," he complained. "I wanted a new walking stick. Hmpf. Some good skin for the outhouse, though."**_

 _ **He ripped some soft hide from the drakon's frills and tucked it in his belt.**_

"Umm… Actually, you know what, I don't want to know." Hermes said.

" _ **Uh…" Annabeth wanted to ask if the giant really used drakon hide for toilet paper, but she decided against it.**_

" _ **Bob, do you want to introduce us?"**_

" _ **Annabeth…." Bob patted Percy's legs. "This is Percy."**_

 _ **Annabeth hoped the Titan was just messing with her, though Bob's face revealed nothing.**_

 _ **She gritted her teeth. "I meant the giant. You promised he could help."**_

" _ **Promise?" The giant glanced over from his work. His eyes narrowed under his bushy red brows. "A big thing, a promise. Why would Bob promise my help?"**_

 _ **Bob shifted his weight. Titans were scary, but Annabeth had never seen one next to a giant before. Compared to the drakon-killer, Bob looked down-right runty.**_

" _ **Damasen is a good giant," Bob said. "He is peaceful. He can cure poisons."**_

 _ **Annabeth watched the giant Damasen, who was now ripping chunks of bloody meat from the drakon carcass with his bare hands.**_

"Attractive." Aphrodite said, dryly.

" _ **Peaceful," she said. "Yes, I can see that."**_

" _ **Good meat for dinner." Damasen stood up straight and studied Annabeth, as if she were another potential source of protein.**_

" _ **Come inside. We will have stew. Then we will see about this promise."**_

"Ooh, ominous." Apollo said, trying to break the tension in the room.

* * *

 _ **AN: So, I'm going to try to balance the work from school and the story a lot better from now on, so hopefully I can update a tiny bit faster. By the way, did anybody else read the first three chapters of The Ship of the Dead, because they were amazing. If not, that's what I'm gonna recommend for this chapter. Also, I just thought of this, but The Ship of the Dead could also refer to Alex Fierro and Magnus. See you guys soon.**_


	20. Rest

_**Disclaimer: I don't own anything, Rick Riordan does.**_

 _ **AN: Here we are once again, back with an especially long chapter this time, because the chapter in the book was 16 pages long so...yay! I'm going to try to have the next chapter up tomorrow, since it is shorter.**_

 _ ***Edit: Just so you guys know, I started writing this chapter at 3 pm and it is now 12:56 am as I upload this. I don't lie when I say I procrastinate.**_

 _ **DeadlyHuggles:**_ _ **Alright, I won't spoil it for you, but you need to read that and the book comes out in a few more days, so… Also, Thank you!**_

 _ **Percabeth824:**_ _ **Thank you so much!**_

 _ **Anonymous:**_ _ **I know, just imagine all of the nickname possibilities, I can't wait until the book comes out!**_

 _ **The evil rainbow:**_ _ **She really messes with their love lives a lot, but, I mean, how else would the goddess of love interact with her favorite couple, that's really the only thing that she**_ **can** _ **do. It sucks, but that's what they have to deal with.**_

 _ **OceanBlueSeaEyes:**_ _ **I know exactly what you mean. Like everybody had to figure out how to survive without their two most powerful members and after building the whole teamwork thing for three books, we got to see them try to work without the team. Just almost everything about this book was amazing.**_

 _ **KriKri:**_ _ **Guess what, another long chapter today. I know, I'm pretty sure that it's the only time that they get actual rest the entire time that they're down there. Also, you know what kind of upsets me, is that no one ever talks about Damasen, everybody always only talks about Bob. I'm doing good, now that my internet is back up after 24 hours of not working. I get exactly what you mean by that, that's happened a lot with me as well. One thing to say about your friends: INCONCEIVABLE that they don't ship them all. But, it sucks so much when your friends don't read the same books or at all really, because there's never anybody to talk to about them. I guess I'm actually not that into mainstream music, you just made me realize how little I actually do listen to mainstream music. And there is absolutely**_ **nothing** _ **wrong with you. Okay, do you just have like a sixth sense for when I'm writing this, because your review once again came in while I was writing this chapter. It's fucking crazy, I love it.**_

 _ **AnotherAwkwardFangirl:**_ _ **Thank you, I've been trying to get the amount of reactions back up to where they were before the**_ **arai** _ **so, you should start to see some more from now on,**_ **hopefully.**

 _ **LeanSkeleton:**_ _ **Thank you! I'm sorry, but I don't really understand what you mean by more specific descriptions.**_

* * *

"Okay, somebody take this book from me _please,_ because I am done reading for a little while."

"Fine, give the book here," Annabeth grumbled when no one else said anything.

 _ **Cozy. Annabeth never thought she would describe anything in Tartarus that way, but despite the fact that the giant's hut was as big as a planetarium and constructed of bones, mud, and drakon skin, it definitely felt cozy. In the center blazed a bonfire made of pitch and bone; yet the smoke was white and odorless, rising through the hole in the middle of the ceiling. The floor was covered with dry marsh grass and gray wool rugs. At one end lay a massive bed of sheepskins and drakon leather. At the other end, free-standing racks were hung with drying plants, cured leather, and what looked like strips of drakon jerky. The whole place smelled of stew, smoke, basil, and thyme. The only thing that worried Annabeth was the flock of sheep huddled in a pen at the back of the hut. Annabeth remembered the cave of Polyphemus the Cyclops, who ate demigods and sheep indiscriminately. She wondered if giants had similar tastes. Part of her was tempted to run, but Bob had already placed Percy in the giant's bed, where he nearly disappeared in the wool and leather. Small Bob hopped off Percy and kneaded the blankets, purring so strongly the bed rattled like a Thousand-Finger Massage.**_

 _ **Damasen plodded to the bonfire. He tossed his drakon meat into a hanging pot that seemed to be made from an old monster skull, then picked up a ladle and began to stir. Annabeth didn't want to be the next ingredient in his stew, but she'd come here for a reason. She took a deep breath and marched up to Damasen.**_

" _ **My friend is dying. Can you cure him or not?"**_

 _ **Her voice caught on the word**_ **friend.** _ **Percy was a lot more than that. Even**_ **boyfriend** _ **really didn't cover it. They'd been through so much together, at this point Percy was**_ **part** _ **of her-a sometimes annoying part, sure, but definitely a part she could not live without.**_

"Aww, that was really sweet, Wise Girl." Percy said.

"Shut up." Annabeth muttered, blushing.

 _ **Damasen looked down at her, glowering under his bushy red eyebrows. Annabeth had met large scary humanoids before, but Damasen unsettled her in a different way. He didn't seem hostile. He radiated sorrow and bitterness, as if her were so wrapped up in his own misery that he resented Annabeth for trying to make him focus on anything else.**_

" _ **I don't hear words like those in Tartarus," the giant grumbled. "**_ **Friend. Promise."**

 _ **Annabeth crossed her arms.**_

" _ **How about**_ **gorgon's blood?** _ **Can you cure that, or did Bob overstate your talents?"**_

 _ **Angering a twenty-foot tall drakon slayer probably wasn't a wise strategy, but Percy was dying. She didn't have time for diplomacy. Damasen scowled at her.**_

" _ **You question my talents? A half-dead mortal straggles into my swamp and questions my talents?"**_

" _ **Yep," she said.**_

" _ **Hmph." Damasen handed Bob the ladle. "Stir."**_

 _ **As Bob tended the stew, Damasen perused his drying racks, plucking various leaves and roots. He popped a fistful of plant material into his mouth, chewed it up, then spat it into a clump of wool.**_

"Sounds tasty." Leo said casually.

" _ **Cup of broth," Damasen ordered.**_

 _ **Bob ladled some stew juice into a hollow gourd. He handed it to Damasen, who dunked the chewed-up gunk ball and stirred it with his finger.**_

"Didn't realize it could get worse," Leo said. "But it did."

"Oh, I think I just threw up in my mouth a little." Frank said.

" _ **Gorgon's blood," he muttered. "Hardly a challenge for**_ **my** _ **talents."**_

 _ **He lumbered to the bedside and propped up Percy with one hand. Small Bob the kitten sniffed the broth and hissed. He scratched the sheets with his paws like he wanted to bury it.**_

" _ **You're going to feed him**_ **that** _ **?" Annabeth asked.**_

 _ **The giant glared at her. "Who is the healer here? You?"**_

"Crazy, you just got shut _down."_ Thalia said.

Annabeth ignored her and kept reading.

 _ **Annabeth shut her mouth. She watched as the giant made Percy sip the broth. Damasen handled him with surprising gentleness, murmuring words of encouragement that she couldn't quite catch. With each sip, Percy's color improved. He drained the cup, and his eyes fluttered open. He looked around with a dazed expression, spotted Annabeth and gave her a drunken grin.**_

" _ **Feel great."**_

 _ **His eyes rolled up in his head. He fell back in the bed and began to snore.**_

"Fucking same, bro." Jason said.

"Wait, when did that happen, cause I don't remember that happening." Percy said all of a sudden.

"Well, if it's in the book, it happened, so…" Piper trailed off.

" _ **A few hours of sleep," Damasen pronounced. "He'll be good as new."**_

 _ **Annabeth sobbed with relief.**_

" _ **Thank you," she said.**_

 _ **Damasen stared at her mournfully.**_

" _ **Oh, don't thank me. You're still doomed. And I require payment for my services."**_

 _ **Annabeth's mouth went dry. "Uh...what sort of payment?"**_

" _ **A story." The giant's eyes glittered. "It gets boring in Tartarus. You can tell me your story while we eat, eh?"**_

"I can appreciate a good story." Hestia said.

 _ **Annabeth felt uneasy telling a giant about their plans. Still, Damasen was a good host. He'd saved Percy. His drakon-meat stew was excellent (especially compared to fire-water). His hut was warm and comfortable, and for the first time since plunging into Tartarus, Annabeth felt like she could relax. Which was ironic, since she was having dinner with a Titan and a giant. She told Damasen about her life and her adventures with Percy. She explained how Percy had met Bob, wiped his memory in the River Lethe, and left him in the care of Hades.**_

" _ **Percy was trying to do something good," she promised Bob. "He didn't know Hades would be such a creep."**_

"Guilty." Hades smirked.

 _ **Even to her, it didn't sound convincing. Hades was**_ **always** _ **a creep. She thought about what the**_ **arai** _ **had said-how Nico di Angelo had been the only person to visit Bob in the palace of the Underworld. Nico was one of the least outgoing, least friendly demigods Annabeth knew. Yet he'd been kind to Bob. By convincing Bob that Percy was a friend, Nico had inadvertently saved their lives. Annabeth wondered if she would**_ **ever** _ **figure that guy out. Bob washed his bowl with his squirt bottle and rag. Damasen made a rolling gesture with his spoon.**_

" _ **Continue your story, Annabeth Chase."**_

 _ **She explained about their quest in the**_ **Argo II.** _ **When she got to the part about stopping Gaea from waking, she faltered.**_

" _ **She's, um...she's your mom, right?"**_

 _ **Damasen scraped his bowl. His face was covered with old poison burns, gouges, and scar tissue, so it looked like the surface of an asteroid.**_

" _ **Yes," he said. "And Tartarus is my father."**_

 _ **He gestured around the hut. "As you can see, I was a disappointment to my parents. They expected...**_ **more** _ **from me."**_

 _ **Annabeth couldn't quite wrap her mind around the fact that she was sharing soup with a twenty-foot-tall lizard-legged man whose parents were Earth and the Pit of Darkness.**_

"Man, teacher-parent conferences must have been really awkward for him." Grover said.

 _ **Olympian gods were hard enough to imagine as parents, but at least they resembled humans. The old primordial gods like Gaea and Tartarus… How could you leave home and ever be independent of your parents, when they literally encompassed the entire world?**_

"That's a terrifying thought." Calypso said.

" _ **So…" she said. "You don't mind us fighting your mom?"**_

 _ **Damasen snorted like a bull. "Best of luck. At present, it's my father you should worry about. With him opposing you, you have no chance to survive."**_

 _ **Suddenly Annabeth didn't feel so hungry. She put her bowl on the floor. Small Bob came over to check it out.**_

" _ **Opposing us how?" she asked.**_

" **All** _ **of this."**_

 _ **Damasen cracked a drakon bone and used a splinter as a toothpick.**_

" _ **All that you see is the body of Tartarus, or at least one manifestation of it. He knows you are here. He tries to thwart your progress at every step. My brethren hunt you. It is remarkable you have lived this long, even with the help of Iapetus."**_

 _ **Bob scowled when he heard his name.**_

" _ **The defeated ones hunts us, yes. They will be close behind now."**_

 _ **Damasen spat out his toothpick.**_

" _ **I can obscure your path for awhile, long enough for you to rest. I have power in this swamp. But eventually, they will catch you."**_

" _ **My friends must reach the Doors of Death," Bob said. "That is the way out."**_

" _ **Impossible," Damasen muttered. "The Doors are too well guarded."**_

 _ **Annabeth sat forward.**_

" _ **But you know where they are?"**_

" _ **Of course. All of Tartarus flows down to one place: his heart. The Doors of Death are there. But you cannot make it there alive with only Iapetus."**_

" _ **Then come with us," Annabeth said. "Help us."**_

" _ **HA!"**_

 _ **Annabeth jumped. In the bed, Percy muttered deliriously in his sleep, "Ha, ha, ha."**_

" _ **Child of Athena," the giant said, "I am not your friend. I helped mortals once, and you see where it got me."**_

" _ **You helped mortals?"**_

"When was this? I was unaware giant's could help mortals." Hazel said.

 _ **Annabeth knew a lot about Greek legends, but she drew a total blank on the name Damasen.**_

" _ **I-I don't understand."**_

" _ **Bad story," Bob explained. "Good giants have bad stories. Damasen was created to oppose Ares."**_

"Oh yeah, I haven't heard anything about that loser in so long, that I completely forgot who he was." Ares said.

"Ares, we literally talked about him and all of the others, a few weeks ago." Athena told him.

"Like I said, a _long time ago."_ Ares replied. "A few weeks is way too long to remember anything."

" _ **Yes," the giant agreed. "Like all my brethren, I was born to answer a certain god. My foe was Ares. But Ares was the god of war. And so, when I was born-"**_

" _ **You were the opposite," Annabeth guessed. "You were peaceful."**_

" _ **Peaceful for a giant, at least." Damasen sighed. "I wandered the fields of Maeonia, in the land you now call Turkey. I tended my sheep and collected my herbs. It was a good life. But I would not fight the gods. My mother and father cursed me for that. The final insult: One day the Maeonian drakon killed a human shepherd, a friend of mine, so I hunted the creature down and slew it, thrusting a tree straight through its mouth. I used the power of the earth to regrow the tree's roots, planting the drakon firmly in the ground. I made sure it would terrorize mortals no more. That was a deed Gaea could not forgive."**_

" _ **Because you helped someone?"**_

" _ **Yes." Damasen looked ashamed. "Gaea opened the earth, and I was consumed, exiled here in the belly of my father Tartarus, where all the useless flotsam collects-all of the bits of creation he does not care for."**_

 _ **The giant plucked a flower out of his hair and regarded it absently.**_

" _ **They let me live, tending my sheep, collecting my herbs, so I might know the uselessness of the life I chose. Every day-or what passes for day in this lightless place-the Maeonian drakon re-forms and attacks me. Killing it is my endless task."**_

 _ **Annabeth gazed around the hut, trying to imagine how many eons Damasen had been exiled here-slaying the drakon, collecting its bones and hide and meat, knowing it would attack again the next day. She could barely imagine surviving a**_ **week** _ **in Tartarus. Exiling you own son here for centuries-that was beyond cruel.**_

"That's really messed up. What kind of parents would do that to their own kids." Hera asked.

All of the demigods just stared directly at her, until the gods all slowly became uncomfortable.

" _ **Break the curse," she blurted out. "Come with us."**_

 _ **Damasen chuckled sourly.**_

" _ **As simple as that. Don't you think I have tried to leave this place? It is impossible. No matter which direction I travel, I end up here again. The swamp is the only thing I know-the only destination I can imagine. No, little demigod. My curse has overtaken me. I have no hope left."**_

" _ **No hope," Bob echoed.**_

" _ **There must be a way."**_

 _ **Annabeth couldn't stand the expression on the giant's face. It reminded her of her own father, the few times he'd confessed to her that he still loved Athena. He had looked so sad and defeated, wishing for something he knew was impossible.**_

" _ **Bob has a plan to reach the Doors of Death," she insisted. "He said we could hide in some sort of Death Mist."**_

" _ **Death Mist?" Damasen scowled at Bob. "You would take them to**_ **Akhlys?"**

" _ **It is the only way," Bob said.**_

" _ **You will die," Damasen said. "Painfully. In darkness. Akhlys trusts no one and helps no one."**_

"She sounds like a nice person." Hazel said.

"I mean, she's literally the goddess of misery, what did you expect?" Zeus told her.

 _ **Bob looked like he wanted to argue, but he pressed his lips together and remained silent.**_

" _ **Is there another way?" Annabeth asked.**_

" _ **No," Damasen said. "The Death Mist...that is the best plan. Unfortunately, it is a terrible plan."**_

"Sounds like every single plan I've ever made." Percy said.

 _ **Annabeth felt like she was hanging over the pit again, unable to pull herself up, unable to maintain her grip-left with no good options.**_

" _ **But isn't it worth trying?" she asked. "You could return to the mortal world. You could see the sun again."**_

 _ **Damasen's eyes were like the sockets of the drakon's skull-dark and hollow, devoid of hope. He flicked a broken bone into the fire and rose to his full height-a massive red warrior in sheepskin and drakon leather, with dried flowers and herbs in his hair. Annabeth could see how he was the**_ **anti-** _ **Ares. Ares was the worst god, blustery and violent. Damasen was the best giant, kind and helpful...and for that, he'd been cursed to eternal torment.**_

" _ **Get some sleep," the giant said. "I will prepare supplies for your journey. I am sorry, but I cannot do more."**_

 _ **Annabeth wanted to argue, but as soon as he said**_ **sleep,** _ **her body betrayed her, despite her resolution never to sleep in Tartarus again. Her belly was full. The fire made a pleasant crackling sound. The herbs in the air reminded her of the hills around Camp Half-Blood in the summer, when the satyrs and naiads gathered wild plants in the lazy afternoons.**_

" _ **Maybe a little sleep," she agreed.**_

 _ **Bob scooped her up like a rag doll. She didn't protest. He set her next to Percy on the giant's bed, and she closed her eyes.**_

"I'm just happy you guys finally got a chance to get some actual rest for once." Jason said.

"All I know is that after all of the eventful things that happened today, I'm tired. I think we need some sleep." Nico said.

"You know what, that is an amazing idea," Poseidon said. "Let's all go pass out in some beds. I'll see you guys in the morning."

* * *

 _ **AN: I just realized that Percy hasn't read anything (yet). By the way, Holy shit, have any of you guys seen American Vandal on Netflix yet, because it is one of the funniest things I have seen in a long time. So, I'm not sure if I've recommended this fanfic yet or not, but here it is anyway:**_ **long live all the magic we made by herecomesthepun.** _ **It's this super fluffy one-shot about a lovesick Percy with magic powers and it was amazing. Anyways, I'll see you guys soon.**_


	21. Fate

_**Disclaimer: I don't own anything, Rick Riordan does.**_

 _ **AN: Hello, I'm back, over the next few days, I'm going to working on finishing the rest of the book, no more procrastination, I will hopefully have the rest of the chapters done and ready to go by the end of the week. I'm sorry that it's been so long, I just had a ton of work to make up since I missed like two weeks of school while being sick.**_

 _ **DeadlyHuggles:**_ _ **I really hope you've gotten a chance to read Ship of the Dead by now, cause that was fucking amazing!**_

 _ **KriKri:**_ _ **Hey, sorry about not updating, but from now on I'm going to be ready to go. I absolutely know what you mean about music getting overplayed, but I think that's the one plus side of me not listening to the radio, I still love a lot of songs that other people must hate by now because of how much it gets played. I will definitely watch that movie (once I'm done with future chapters, of course) and that whole P.S. is actually me, and I cannot stop laughing over it. BTW, I read Ship of the Dead in 3 hours the day it came out and Holy Shit, I loved that book. TFIOS was pretty great, too.**_

 _ **Sayo:**_ _ **Thank You!**_

 _ **Just that seaweed brain:**_ _ **I'm pretty sure Misery is in like 4 or 5 chapters and I cannot wait for it!**_

 _ **Prasad:**_ _ **That's a really good idea! I might end up using that when Akhlys shows up.**_

 _ **Lintsu13:**_ _ **Thank You!**_

* * *

It turned out, that after spending the last few days, or the equivalent of that in frozen time, reading with no sleep was a terrible idea and everybody needed more sleep than usual to make up for it.

Once again, Apollo decided to wake everyone up by just becoming brighter than usual, which even his usual was brighter than what most people could handle for long periods of time, and walking into their rooms. It was surprisingly effective.

When everybody had gotten up and eaten breakfast, they went back to the throne room to continue reading.

"Who read last? It feels like it's been weeks since we last read a chapter." Percy asked.

"It was me, Seaweed Brain," Annabeth started. "I was the last one to read, how do you not remember, it was like 30 hours ago."

"Okay, listen, when I go to sleep, I'm dead to the world and forget about everything that happened before I was asleep. I would think that you know about how much I sleep better than anybody, but I guess not."

"Anyways, let's figure out who's reading next." Hades interrupted.

"I got this." A very well rested Jason said.

 _ **Annabeth woke staring at the shadows dancing across the hut's ceiling. She hadn't had a single dream. That was so unusual, she wasn't sure if she'd actually woken up. As she lay there, Percy snoring next to her and Small Bob purring on her belly, she heard Bob and Damasen deep in conversation.**_

"Wow, that sounds vaguely domestic and I love it." Aphrodite said.

" _ **You haven't told her," Damasen said.**_

" _ **No," Bob admitted. "She is already scared."**_

 _ **The giant grumbled. "She**_ **should** _ **be. And if you cannot guide them past Night?"**_

 _ **Damasen said**_ **Night** _ **like it was a proper name-an**_ **evil** _ **name.**_

"No. He brought you to meet _her._ How did you guys get out alive?" Apollo asked, disbelief written all over his face.

"That question seems to be a recurring theme in our lives and I'll let you know the answer as soon as I do." Percy said.

" _ **I have to," Bob said.**_

" _ **Why?" Damasen wondered. "What have the demigods given you? They have erased your old self, everything you were. Titans and giants...we are meant to be the foes of the gods and their children. Are we not?"**_

"That's a really good question, but I mean the only way we could have possibly made it through that war was if we worked with our enemies. Could you imagine trying to mix Greek and Roman if there wasn't a war looming? It would have been disastrous." Piper said.

" _ **Then why did you heal the boy?"**_

 _ **Damasen exhaled. "I have been wondering that myself. Perhaps because the girl goaded me, or perhaps… I find these two demigods intriguing. They are resilient to have made it so far. That is admirable. Still, how can we help them any further? It is not our fate."**_

" _ **Perhaps," Bob said, uncomfortably. "But...do you like our fate?"**_

" _ **What a question. Does anyone like his fate?"**_

" _ **I liked being Bob," Bob murmured. "Before I started to remember…"**_

" _ **Huh." There was a shuffling sound, as if Damasen was stuffing a leather bag.**_

" _ **Damasen," the Titan asked. "Do you remember the sun?"**_

 _ **The shuffling stopped. Annabeth heard the giant exhale through his nostrils. "Yes. It was yellow. When it touched the horizon, it turned the sky beautiful colors."**_

" _ **I miss the sun," Bob said. "The stars, too. I would like to say hello to the stars again."**_

" _ **Stars…" Damasen said the word as if he'd forgotten its meaning. "Yes. They made silver patterns in the night sky."**_

Percy, very quickly, wiped away some tears that were about to fall.

 _ **He threw something to the floor with a thump. "Bah. This is useless talk. We cannot-"**_

 _ **In the distance, the Maeonian drakon roared. Percy sat bolt upright.**_

" _ **What? What-where-what?"**_

" _ **It's okay," Annabeth took his arm.**_

 _ **When he registered that they were together in a giant's bed with a skeleton cat, he looked more confused than ever.**_

" _ **That noise...where are we?"**_

" _ **How much do you remember?" she asked.**_

 _ **Percy frowned. His eyes seemed alert. All his wounds had vanished. Except for his tattered clothes and a few layers of dirt and grime, he looked as if he'd never fallen into Tartarus.**_

" _ **I-the demon grandmothers-and then...not much."**_

 _ **Damasen loomed over the bed. "There is no time, little mortals. The drakon is returning. I fear its roar will draw the others-my brethren, hunting you. They will be here within minutes."**_

 _ **Annabeth's pulse quickened. "What will you tell them when they get here?"**_

 _ **Damasen's mouth twitched. "What is there to tell? Nothing of significance, as long as you are gone."**_

"I was really hoping he said something like that." Hestia breathed.

 _ **He tossed them two drakon-leather satchels. "Clothes, food, drink."**_

 _ **Bob was wearing a similar but larger pack. He leaned on his broom, gazing at Annabeth as if still pondering Damasen's words:**_ **What have the demigods given you? We are meant to be the foes of the gods and their children.**

 _ **Suddenly Annabeth was struck by a thought so sharp and clear, it was like a blade from Athena herself.**_

" _ **The Prophecy of Seven," she said.**_

"Tell me you didn't. You did, didn't you? With _their_ help?" Athena said, getting excited, because she understood what Annabeth had just realized.

 _ **Percy had already climbed out of the bed and was shouldering his pack. He frowned at her. "What about it?"**_

 _ **Annabeth grabbed Damasen's hand, startling the giant. His brow furrowed. His skin was as rough as sandstone.**_

" _ **You**_ **have** _ **to come with us," she pleaded. "The Prophecy says**_ **foes bear arms to the Doors of Death.** _ **I thought it meant Romans and Greeks, but that's not it. The line means**_ **us-** _ **demigods, a Titan, a giant. We**_ **need** _ **you to close the Doors!"**_

 _ **The drakon roared outside, closer this time. Damasen gently pulled his hand away.**_

" _ **No, child," he murmured. "My curse is here. I cannot escape it."**_

" _ **Yes, you can," Annabeth said. "Don't fight the drakon. Figure out a way to break the cycle! Find**_ **another** _ **fate."**_

 _ **Damasen shook his head. "Even if I could, I cannot leave this swamp. It is the only destination I can picture."**_

 _ **Annabeth's mind raced. "There**_ **is** _ **another destination. Look at me! Remember my face. When you're ready, come find me. We'll take you to the mortal world with us. You can see the sunlight and stars."**_

"Please tell me that worked, because those are strategies that I couldn't even imagine." Grover said.

 _ **The ground shook. The drakon was close now, stomping through the marsh, blasting trees and moss with its poison spray. Farther away, Annabeth heard the voice of the giant Polybotes, urging his followers forward. "THE SEA GOD'S SON! HE IS CLOSE!"**_

"Have I ever told you how much I hate that particular giant?" Poseidon said, nervously.

" _ **Annabeth," Percy said urgently, "that's our cue to leave."**_

"Please leave right now, before something bad happens." A rare worried Athena said.

 _ **Damasen took something from his belt. In his massive hand, the white shard looked like another toothpick; but when he offered it to Annabeth, she realized it was a sword-a blade of dragon bone, honed to a deadly edge, with a simple grip of leather.**_

" _ **One last gift for the child of Athena," rumbled the giant. "I cannot have you walking to your death unarmed. Now, go! Before it is too late."**_

 _ **Annabeth wanted to sob. She took the sword, but she couldn't even make herself say thank you. She knew the giant was meant to fight at their side. That was the answer-but Damasen turned away.**_

" _ **We must leave," Bob urged as his kitten climbed onto his shoulder.**_

" _ **He's right, Annabeth," Percy said.**_

 _ **They ran for the entrance. Annabeth didn't look back as she followed Percy and Bob into the swamp, but she heard Damasen behind them, shouting his battle cry at the advancing drakon, his voice cracking with despair as he faced his old enemy yet again.**_

Multiple olympians around the throne room looked close to crying, before they composed themselves, for the sake of their image (and for the sake of their children too, I'm sure).

* * *

 _ **AN: So, wow, it's been a**_ **while** _ **since the last chapter, again, sorry about that, but we're here now, that's what matters. I'm gonna recommend**_ **Memories by Another Wise Girl xx.** _ **I really love that story so far, it's a fucking rollercoaster of emotions. See you guys soon.**_


	22. Hope

_**Disclaimer: I don't own anything, Rick Riordan does.**_

 _ **AN: I'm gonna try and get the next chapter up in the next few hours because I'm not evil enough to intentionally leave people on a cliffhanger and I've been waiting too long for this chapter to put it off any longer.**_

 _ ****Edit: This is not the chapter I thought it was, so the next chapter will be a double update and it should be done sometime tomorrow**_

 _ **KriKri:**_ _ **Doing nothing? That's a BIG mood. Sadly, no I have not read that book, and I've had We Were Liars recommended to me so many times, I just haven't gotten to it yet. Also, don't know who that is, but I mostly just watch pokemon related stuff, or just really random youtube recommendations. Yeah, being sick sucked, but I'm better now, so yay. Yo, it's totally cool if you can't review, don't worry about it.**_

 _ **Sarah:**_ _ **Thank You!**_

 _ **RosettaQueen20:**_ _ **Thanks!**_

 _ **DeadlyHuggles:**_ _ **That really sucks, that you haven't gotten to read the book yet. You know, I somehow still haven't read them yet, I've seen the movies, but for some reason, I just haven't read the books. Also, I'd probably be Slytherin, which is based off of this one post on tumblr that did a really good job of explaining what each house meant to me.**_

 _ **Lanalight1:**_ _ **Thank You!**_

 _ **AnnaUnicorn:**_ _ **Fucking Same.**_

 _ **OceanBlueSeaEyes:**_ _ **Maybe one day they will reform and get to see them. One day.**_

* * *

"Bro, pass the book here, I think I've put it off long enough, it's my turn to read." Percy called out.

"Alright, if you're sure, bro." Jason told him.

"I'm sure, Grace."

 _ **Percy felt homesick for the swamp. He never thought he'd miss sleeping in a giant's leather bed in a drakon-bone hut in a festering cesspool, but right now that sounded like Elysium.**_

"Same, tbh." Hermes mentioned.

 _ **He and Annabeth and Bob stumbled along in the darkness, the air thick and cold, the ground alternating patches of pointy rocks and pools of muck. The terrain seemed to be designed so that Percy could never let his guard down. Even walking ten feet was exhausting. Percy had started out from the giant's hut feeling strong again, his head clear, his belly full of drakon jerky from their packs of provisions. Now his legs were sore. Every muscle ached. He pulled a makeshift tunic of drakon leather over his shredded T-shirt, but it did nothing to keep out the chill. His focus narrowed to the ground in front of him. Nothing existed except for that and Annabeth at his side. Whenever he felt like giving up, plopping himself down, and dying (which was, like every ten minutes), he reached over and took her hand, just to remember there was warmth in the world.**_

"Aww, that's adorable." Artemis said.

Zeus looked at his daughter like she had gone crazy, not unlike everybody else.

"What? Just because I don't believe in them, doesn't mean I can't appreciate a good relationship." Artemis finally said.

"...you're not wrong." Leo said.

 _ **After Annabeth's talk with Damasen, Percy was worried about her. Annabeth didn't give in to despair easily, but as they walked, she wiped tears from her eyes, trying not to let Percy see. He knew she hated it when her plans didn't work out. She was convinced they needed Damasen's help, but the giant had turned them down. Part of Percy was relieved. He was concerned enough about Bob's staying on their side once they reached the Doors of Death. He wasn't sure he wanted a giant as his wingman, even if that giant could cook a mean bowl of stew.**_

 _ **He wondered what had happened after they left Damasen's hut. He hadn't heard their pursuers in hours, but he could sense their hatred...especially Polybotes's. That giant was back there somewhere, following, pushing them deeper into Tartarus.**_

"Did I mention how much I hate that giant?" Poseidon repeated. "Because I really despise him."

 _ **Percy tried to think of good things to keep his spirits up-the lake at Camp Half-Blood, the time he'd kissed Annabeth underwater. He tried to imagine the two of them at New Rome together, walking through the hills and holding hands. But Camp Jupiter and Camp Half-Blood both seemed like dreams. He felt as if only Tartarus existed. This was the real world-death, darkness, cold, pain. He'd been imagining all the rest.**_

 _ **He shivered. No. That was the pit speaking to him, sapping his resolve.**_

"Good. You can't let the pit get to you, otherwise, you'll never make it out of there alive." Nico said.

 _ **He wondered how Nico had survived down here alone without going insane. That kid had more strength than Percy had given him credit for. The deeper they traveled, the harder it became to stay focused.**_

" _ **This place is worse than the River Cocytus," he muttered.**_

" _ **Yes," Bob called back happily. "Much worse! It means we are close."**_

"Okay, that really can't be good. As much I as I'm loving Bob right now, the fact that he thinks that that place getting worse is a good thing, might not be a good thing." Thalia said.

 _ **Close to what? Percy wondered. But he didn't have the strength to ask. He noticed Small Bob the cat had hidden himself in Bob's coveralls again, which reinforced Percy's opinion that the kitten was the smartest one in their group. Annabeth laced her fingers through his. In the light of his bronze sword, her face was beautiful.**_

" _ **We're together," she reminded him. "We'll get through this."**_

 _ **He'd been so worried about lifting her spirits, and here she was reassuring**_ **him.**

"It's not a big deal, you were doing the same for me, Percy." Annabeth told him.

" _ **Yeah," he agreed. "Piece of cake."**_

" _ **But next time," she said. "I want to go somewhere different on a date."**_

" _ **Paris was nice," he recalled.**_

 _ **She managed a smile. Months ago, before Percy got amnesia, they'd had dinner in Paris one night, compliments of Hermes. That seemed like another lifetime.**_

"I'm sorry, why was I never told about this date in Paris?" Piper asked Annabeth.

"In case, you haven't noticed, we've been a _bit_ busy." She told Piper.

" _ **I'd settle for New Rome," she offered. "As long as you're there with me."**_

 **Man,** _ **Annabeth was awesome. For a moment, Percy actually remembered what it was like to feel happy. He had an amazing girlfriend. They could have a future together.**_

"You know, I really kinda like you, Wise Girl." Percy said to Annabeth.

"Yeah, yeah, I really kinda like you, too, Seaweed Brain." She muttered back.

 _ **Then the darkness dispersed with a massive sigh, like the last breath of a dying god. In front of them was a clearing-a barren field of dust and stones. In the center, about twenty yards away, knelt the gruesome figure of a woman, her clothes tattered, her limbs emaciated, her skin leathery green. Her head was bent as she sobbed quietly, and the sound shattered all Percy's hopes. He realized that life was pointless. His struggles were for nothing. This woman cried as if mourning the death of the entire world.**_

" _ **We're here," Bob announced. "Akhlys can help."**_

"Welp, that doesn't sound good,but I want to know more." Frank said. "Let's find out together."

* * *

 _ **AN: I'm gonna have to recommend**_ **Open This When by Azuphere.** _ **Sadly, it was unfinished, but it was still really good. I'm going to try and get the next chapter up before school tomorrow, or after school, since it's an early release day, so at the latest early afternoon tomorrow. See you guys then.**_


	23. Misery

_**Disclaimer: I don't own anything, Rick Riordan does.**_

 _ **AN: It's finally time!**_

 _ **Prasad:**_ _ **Thank you! I would hope they're not either, but I feel like he's a little scared of himself at this point, I guess we'll see what happens.**_

 _ **Guest:**_ _ **I think we're going to find out the gods' reactions together, because even I don't know what they're going to be yet.**_

 _ **DeadlyHuggles:**_ _ **Thank you! That's amazing that you finally got the book, and I absolutely agree with you, Alex is an amazing character, I love him/her. You're right and I hate that that's the way it works, but that's why I've always thought that most book series would work perfectly as tv shows. You could just have each book in the series be a different season, for PJO and HoO, that's a 10 season show, all by itself. By the way, great usage of puns.**_

 _ **The evil rainbow:**_ _ **Here you go!**_

 _ **OceanBlueSeaEyes:**_ _ **Those are all absolutely amazing parts of the book. Personally, Akhlys and the Arai are my favorite parts.**_

* * *

"Anybody else want to read?" Percy asked. "No? Guess I'll keep reading then."

 _ **If the sobbing ghoul was Bob's idea of help, Percy was pretty sure he didn't want it. Nevertheless, Bob trudged forward. Percy felt obliged to follow. If nothing else, this area was less dark-not exactly light, but with more of a soupy white fog.**_

" _ **Akhlys!" Bob called.**_

 _ **The creature raised her head, and Percy's stomach screamed,**_ **Help me!**

 _ **Her body was bad enough. She looked like the victim of a famine-limbs like sticks, swollen knees and knobby elbows, rags for clothes, broken fingernails and toenails. Dust was caked on her skin and piled on her shoulders as if she'd taken a shower at the bottom of an hourglass. Her face was utter desolation. Her eyes were sunken and rheumy, pouring out tears. Her nose dripped like a waterfall. Her stringy gray hair was matted to her skull in greasy tufts, and her cheeks were raked and bleeding as if she'd been clawing herself.**_

"She sounds horrible." Hera said.

"Yeah, you weren't there, the book doesn't do her justice." Annabeth told her.

 _ **Percy couldn't stand to meet her eyes, so he lowered his gaze. Across her knees lay an ancient shield-a battered circle of wood and bronze, painted with the likeness of Akhlys herself holding a shield, so the image seemed to go on forever, smaller and smaller.**_

"What's _she_ doing with my son's shield?" Zeus asked nobody in particular.

"Which son?" Hades asked innocently, causing Hera to glare at Zeus.

" _ **That shield," Annabeth murmured. "That's**_ **his.** _ **I thought it was just a story."**_

" _ **Oh, no," the old hag wailed. "The shield of Hercules. He painted me on its surface, so his enemies would see me in their final moments-the goddess of misery." She coughed so hard, it made Percy's chest hurt. "As if Hercules knew true misery. It's not even a good likeness!"**_

"I'm sorry, why would you _want_ a goddess of misery?" Hazel asked.

"Well, it's not like we could control what she was a goddess of, besides, she's been here for much longer than we have, she's one of the original primordial daughters of Nyx." Athena informed everybody.

"Well, that sounds _so_ much worse than what _I_ was thinking, thanks for clearing that up." Leo said, smiling sarcastically.

 _ **Percy gulped. When he and his friends had encountered Hercules at the Straits of Gibraltar, it hadn't gone well. The exchange had involved a lot of yelling, death threats, and high-velocity pineapples.**_

" _ **What's his shield doing here?" Percy asked.**_

"I would like to know that as well." Zeus interrupted.

"Well, I would tell you, if you would let me read the story." Percy said.

 _ **The goddess stared at him with her wet milky eyes. Her cheeks dripped blood, making red polka dots on her tattered dress. "He doesn't need it anymore, does he? It came here when his mortal body was burned. A reminder, I suppose, that no shield is sufficient. In the end, misery overtakes all of you. Even Hercules."**_

"That's _just_ what I needed today, a reminder of all of the upcoming misery in our lives." Piper muttered.

 _ **Percy inched closer to Annabeth. He tried to remember why they were here, but the sense of despair made it difficult to think. Hearing Akhlys speak, he no longer found it strange that she had clawed her own cheeks. The goddess radiated pure pain.**_

" _ **Bob," Percy said. "We shouldn't have come here."**_

"You know, that was the first smart thing you've said all day." Clarisse said.

 _ **From somewhere inside Bob's uniform, the skeleton kitten mewled in agreement. The Titan shifted and winced as if Small Bob was clawing his armpit.**_

" _ **Akhlys controls the Death Mist," he insisted. "She can hide you."**_

" **Hide** _ **them?" Akhlys made a gurgling sound. She was either laughing or choking to death. "Why would I do that?"**_

" _ **They must reach the Doors of Death," Bob said. "To return to the mortal world."**_

" _ **Impossible!" Akhlys said. "The armies of Tartarus will find you. They will kill you."**_

 _ **Annabeth turned the blade of her drakon-bone sword, which Percy had to admit made her look pretty intimidating and hot in a "Barbarian Princess" kind of way.**_

By the time Percy finished the sentence, Athena was already mildly glaring at him.

"Was that really the time for that?" Annabeth asked him.

"Probably not, but I'm sorry it was a little distracting." He said, sheepishly.

" _ **So I guess your Death Mist is pretty useless, then," she said.**_

"It might not be the best idea to antagonize the literal goddess of _misery._ " Apollo said.

 _ **The goddess bared her broken yellow teeth. "**_ **Useless?** _ **Who are you?"**_

" _ **A daughter of Athena."**_

 _ **Annabeth's voice sounded brave-though how she did it, Percy didn't know.**_

" _ **I didn't walk halfway across Tartarus to be told what's impossible by some minor goddess."**_

 _ **The dust quivered at their feet. Fog swirled around them with a sound like agonized wailing.**_

" _ **Minor goddess?" Akhlys's gnarled fingernails dug into Hercules's shield, gouging the metal. "I was old before the Titans were born, you ignorant girl. I was old when Gaea first woke. Misery is**_ **eternal.** _ **Existence is misery. I was born of the eldest ones-of Chaos and Night. I was-"**_

"Wow, she's really edgy, isn't she?" Leo said.

" _ **Yes, yes," Annabeth said. "Sadness and misery, blah blah blah. But you still don't have enough power to hide two demigods with your Death Mist. Like I said: useless."**_

 _ **Percy cleared his throat. "Uh, Annabeth-"**_

 _ **She flashed him a warning look:**_ **Work with me.** _ **He realized how terrified she was, but she had no choice. This was their best shot at stirring the goddess into action.**_

"Ohh, you're doing the same thing that you did with Damasen, that makes a lot more sense than you being suicidal." Apollo realized.

" _ **I mean….Annabeth is right!" Percy volunteered. "Bob brought us all this way because he thought you could help. But I guess you're too busy staring at that shield and crying. I can't blame you. It looks just like you."**_

 _ **Akhlys wailed and glared at the Titan.**_

" _ **Why did you inflict these annoying children on me?"**_

 _ **Bob made a sound somewhere between a rumble and a whimper.**_

" _ **I thought-I thought-"**_

" _ **The Death Mist is not for**_ **helping!"** _ **Akhlys shrieked. "It shrouds mortals in misery as their souls pass into the Underworld. It is the very breath of Tartarus, of death, of despair!"**_

" _ **Awesome," Percy said. "Could we get two orders of that to go?"**_

 _ **Akhlys hissed. "Ask me for a more sensible gift. I am also the goddess of poisons. I could give you death-thousands of ways to die less painful than the one you have chosen by marching into the heart of the pit."**_

"Uhh, did she say _poisons_? As in, the kind that _kills_ you? As in, more than one?" Frank asked.

 _ **Around the goddess, flowers bloomed in the dust-dark purple, orange, and red blossoms that smelled sickly sweet. Percy's head swam.**_

" _ **Nightshade," Akhlys offered. "Hemlock. Belladonna, henbane, or strychnine. I can dissolve your innards, boil your blood."**_

" _ **That's very nice of you," Percy said. "But I've had enough poison for one trip. Now, can you hide us in your Death Mist, or not?"**_

" _ **Yeah, it'll be fun," Annabeth said.**_

 _ **The goddess's eyes narrowed. "**_ **Fun?"**

" _ **Sure," Annabeth promised. "If we fail, think how great it will be for you, gloating over our spirits when we die in agony. You'll get to say 'I told you so' for eternity."**_

" _ **Or, if we succeed," Percy added, "think of all the suffering you'll bring to the monsters down here. We intend to seal the Doors of Death. That's going to cause a lot of wailing and moaning."**_

 _ **Akhlys considered. "I enjoy suffering. Wailing is also good."**_

" _ **Then it's settled," Percy said. "Make us invisible."**_

 _ **Akhlys struggled to her feet. The shield of Hercules rolled away and wobbled to a stop in a patch of poison flowers.**_

" _ **It is not so simple," the goddess said. "The Death Mist comes at the moment you are closest to your end. Your eyes will be clouded only then. The world will fade."**_

"So, that sounds like she wants you to die, I would recommend getting the Hades out of there." Grover mentioned.

 _ **Percy's mouth felt dry. "Okay. But...we'll be shrouded from the monsters?"**_

" _ **Oh, yes," Akhlys said. "If you survive the process, you will be able to pass unnoticed among the armies of Tartarus. It is hopeless, of course, but if you are determined, then come. I will show you the way."**_

" _ **The way to where, exactly?" Annabeth asked.**_

 _ **The goddess was already shuffling into the gloom. Percy turned to look at Bob, but the Titan was gone. How does a ten-foot-tall silver dude with a very loud kitten disappear?"**_

"What happened to Bob? I swear to the gods, Bob better be safe, or I _will_ find him and kill him _myself._ " Calypso said.

" _ **Hey!" Percy yelled to Akhlys. "Where's our friend?"**_

" _ **He cannot take this path," the goddess called back. "He is not mortal. Come, little fools. Come experience the Death Mist."**_

"Don't follow her!" Grover exclaimed. "You're going to follow her, aren't you?"

Percy continued reading.

 _ **Annabeth exhaled and grabbed his hand. "Well...how bad can it be?"**_

 _ **The question was so ridiculous Percy laughed, even though it hurt his lungs.**_

" _ **Yeah. Next date, though-dinner in New Rome."**_

 _ **They followed the goddess's dusty footprints through the poison flowers, deeper into the fog.**_

"Oh, good, you're following her." Grover said, resigned.

Percy knew what was coming next, and decided that _he_ should be the one to read the next part as well. Nobody else should have to read about what he did down there, it was his responsibility.

* * *

 _ **AN: So, here we go, it's time for the most terrifying part of the entire book. I'm gonna leave the recommendation for the next chapter. Also, there's going to be minimal reactions until the end of the next chapter, sorry about that if you don't like it. See you guys very soon.**_


	24. Death Mist

_**Disclaimer: I don't own anything, Rick Riordan does.**_

 _ **AN: I want you to know, I thought this would be the chapter with the poison, and I was extremely wrong, looks like you're getting three chapters today. Also, sorry that this got delayed, I just got caught reading an amazing Percabeth fic.**_

 _ **Prasad:**_ _ **Yeah, that's what I was thinking of doing, at the end of the poison chapter is when we'll get everybody's reactions.**_

 _ **Just that seaweed brain:**_ _ **It should be the next chapter**_

* * *

Percy began reading so that he could be done with this as soon as possible, he didn't need anybody else to single him out like they had when they first learned he was a son of Poseidon.

 _ **Percy missed Bob.**_

 _ **He'd gotten used to having the Titan on his side, lighting their way with his silver hair and his fearsome war broom. Now their only guide was an emaciated corpse lady with serious self-esteem issues.**_

 _Since when are you qualified to talk about_ someone else's _self-esteem issues,_ Percy thought to himself.

 _ **As they struggled across the dusty plain, the fog became so thick that Percy had to resist the urge to swat it away with his hands.**_

"Wouldn't you be able to just control it with your crazy Aquaman powers since fog has a ton of water vapor in it?" Leo asked.

"No, my children are usually only able to control the most basic form of liquid water." Poseidon answered for him. "Water vapor would be too complex to control."

"Makes sense."

Percy and Annabeth looked at each other worried about what would happen once they found out that he could control water vapor, and _so much more._

 _ **The only reason he was able to follow Akhlys's path was because poisonous plants sprang up wherever she walked. If they were still on the body of Tartarus, Percy figured they must be on the bottom of his foot-a rough, calloused expanse where only the most disgusting plant life grew. Finally they arrived at the end of the big toe. At least that's what it looked like to Percy. The fog dissipated, and they found themselves on a peninsula that jutted out over a pitch-black void.**_

"Wait, does that mean that there's something deeper than Tartarus?" Grover asked.

"Well, that's most likely Chaos, or at least the pit that leads to Chaos." Demeter said.

"Really? I always thought that Chaos was just this void that existed outside of the universe, not something below Tartarus, I didn't really think that there was anything below Tartarus." Calypso said.

" _ **Here we are."**_

 _ **Akhlys turned and leered at them. Blood from her cheeks dripped on her dress. Her sickly eyes looked moist and swollen but somehow excited. Can Misery look excited?**_

"Just because she personifies misery, it doesn't mean that she has to always stay miserable." Dionysus said.

" _ **Uh...great," Percy asked. "Where is**_ **here** _ **?"**_

" _ **The verge of final death," Akhlys said. "Where Night meets the void below Tartarus."**_

 _ **Annabeth inched forward and peered over the cliff. "I thought there was nothing below Tartarus."**_

" _ **Oh, certainly there is…" Akhlys coughed. "Even Tartarus had to rise from somewhere. This is the edge of the earliest darkness, which was my mother. Below lies the realm of Chaos, my father. Here, you are closer to nothingness than any mortal has ever been. Can you not feel it?"**_

 _ **Percy knew what she meant. The void seemed to be pulling at him, leaching the breath from his lungs and the oxygen from his blood. He looked at Annabeth and saw that her lips were tinged blue.**_

" _ **We can't stay here," he said.**_

" _ **No, indeed!" Akhlys said. "Don't you feel the Death Mist? Even now, you pass between. Look!"**_

 _ **White smoke gathered around Percy's feet. As it coiled up his legs, he realized the smoke wasn't surrounding him. It was coming**_ **from** _ **him. His whole body was dissolving. He held up his hands and found they were fuzzy and indistinct. He couldn't even tell how many fingers he had. Hopefully still ten.**_

 _ **He turned to Annabeth and stifled a yelp. "You're-uh-"**_

 _ **He couldn't say it. She looked**_ **dead.**

 _ **Her skin was sallow, her eye sockets dark and sunken. Her beautiful hair had dried into a skein of cobwebs. She looked like she'd been stuck in a cool, dark mausoleum for decades, slowly withering into a desiccated husk. When she turned to look at him, her features momentarily blurred into mist. Percy's blood moved like sap in his veins.**_

"That was definitely terrifying." Percy told Annabeth.

 _ **For years, he had worried about Annabeth dying. When you were a demigod, that went with the territory. Most half-bloods didn't live that long. You always knew that the next monster you fought could be your last. But seeing Annabeth like this was too painful. He'd rather stand in the River Phlegethon, or get attacked by**_ **arai,** _ **or be trampled by giants.**_

" _ **Oh, gods," Annabeth sobbed. "Percy, the way you look…"**_

 _ **Percy studied his arms. All he saw were blobs of white mist, but he guessed that to Annabeth he looked like a corpse. He took a few steps, though it was difficult. His body felt insubstantial, like he was made of helium and cotton candy.**_

" _ **I've looked better," he decided. "I can't move very well. But I'm all right."**_

"That's never a good thing, having limited mobility like that." Ares mentioned.

 _ **Akhlys clucked. "Oh, you're definitely**_ **not** _ **all right."**_

 _ **Percy frowned. "But we'll pass unseen now? We can get to the Doors of Death?"**_

" _ **Well, perhaps you could," the goddess said, "if you lived that long, which you won't."**_

 _ **Akhlys spread her gnarled fingers. More plants bloomed along the edge of the pit-hemlock, nightshade, and oleander spreading toward Percy's feet like a deadly carpet.**_

"Of course it's trap, when are we going to meet something on the Greek side of our family that doesn't want to kill us?" Thalia asked.

The gods looked uncomfortable, since they were usually the reason their kids were hunted after.

" _ **The Death Mist is not simply a disguise, you see. It is a state of being. I could not bring you this gift unless death followed-true death."**_

" _ **It's a trap," Annabeth said.**_

 _ **The goddess cackled. "Didn't you**_ **expect** _ **me to betray you?"**_

" _ **Yes," Annabeth and Percy said together.**_

" _ **Well, then, it was hardly a trap! More of an inevitability. Misery is inevitable. Pain is-"**_

" _ **Yeah, yeah," Percy growled. "Let's get to the fighting."**_

 _ **He drew Riptide, but the blade was made of smoke. When he slashed at Akhlys, the sword just floated across her like a gentle breeze. The goddess's ruined mouth split into a grin.**_

" _ **Did I forget to mention? You are now only mist now-a shadow before death. Perhaps if you had time, you could learn to control your new form. But you do**_ **not** _ **have time. Since you cannot touch me, I fear any fight with Misery will be quite one-sided."**_

 _ **Her fingernails grew into talons. Her jaw unhinged, and her yellow teeth elongated into fangs.**_

"Well that sounds great, can we keep reading, because I really want to know how you could have possibly made it out of that one." Hades said.

"You really _don't_ want to know, trust me." Percy said.

* * *

 _ **AN: NOW, it's time for poison, no more mixing up the chapters, it's finally time. See you guys very soon.**_


	25. Everyone Has A Dark Side, Right?

_**Disclaimer: I don't own anything, Rick Riordan does.**_

 _ **AN: It's TIME!**_

 _ **Prasad:**_ _ **Thank you!**_

 _ **RosettaQueen20:**_ _ **I agree 100%. I've been waiting for this chapter since I started the story.**_

 _ **MoonShadowPup:**_ _ **Here you go!**_

* * *

Percy began reading immediately.

 _ **Akhlys lunged at Percy, and for a split second he thought:**_ **Well, hey, I'm just smoke. She can't touch me, right?**

 _ **He imagined the Fates up in Olympus, laughing at his wishful thinking:**_ **LOL, NOOB!**

 _ **The goddess's claws raked across his chest and stung like boiling water. Percy stumbled backward, but he wasn't used to being smoky. His legs moved too slowly. His arms felt like tissue paper. In desperation, he threw his backpack at her, thinking maybe it would turn solid when it left his hand, but no such luck. It fell with a soft thud. Akhlys snarled, crouching to spring. She would have bitten Percy's face off if Annabeth hadn't charged and screamed, "HEY!" right in the goddess's ear.**_

 _ **Akhlys flinched, turning toward the sound. She lashed out at Annabeth, but Annabeth was better at moving than Percy. Maybe she wasn't feeling as smoky, or maybe she'd just had more combat training. She'd been at Camp Half-Blood since she was seven. Probably she'd had classes Percy never got, like How to Fight While Partially Made of Smoke.**_

 _ **Annabeth dove straight between the goddess's legs and somersaulted to her feet. Akhlys turned and attacked, but Annabeth dodged again, like a matador. Percy was so stunned, he lost a few precious seconds. He stared at corpse Annabeth, shrouded in mist but moving as fast and confidently as ever. Then it occurred to him why she was doing this: to buy them time. Which meant Percy needed to help.**_

 _ **He thought furiously, trying to come up with a way to defeat Misery. How could he fight when he couldn't touch anything?**_

 _ **On Akhlys's third attack, Annabeth wasn't so lucky. She tried to veer aside, but the goddess grabbed Annabeth's wrist and pulled her hard, sending her sprawling. Before the goddess could pounce, Percy advanced, yelling and waving his sword. He still felt about as solid as a Kleenex, but his anger seemed to help him move faster.**_

" _ **Hey, Happy!" he yelled.**_

 _ **Akhlys spun, dropping Annabeth's arm. "Happy?" she demanded.**_

" _ **Yeah!" He ducked as she swiped at his head. "You're downright cheerful!"**_

" _ **Arggh!" She lunged again, but she was off balance. Percy sidestepped and backed away, leading the goddess farther from Annabeth.**_

" _ **Pleasant!" he called. "Delightful!"**_

"I've got to say that's a strange tactic, but whatever works." Hephaestus said.

 _ **The goddess snarled and winced. She stumbled after Percy. Each compliment seemed to hit her like sand in the face.**_

" _ **I will kill you slowly!" she growled, her eyes and nose watering, blood dripping from her cheeks. "I will cut you into pieces as a sacrifice to Night!"**_

 _ **Annabeth struggled to her feet. She started rifling through her pack, no doubt looking for something that might help. Percy wanted to give her more time. She was the brains. Better for him to get attacked while she came up with a brilliant plan.**_

" _ **Cuddly!" Percy yelled. "Fuzzy, warm, and huggable!"**_

 _ **Akhlys made a growling, choking noise, like a cat having a seizure.**_

" _ **A slow death!" she screamed. "A death from a thousand poisons!"**_

 _ **All around her, poisonous plants grew and burst like overfilled balloons. Green-and-white sap trickled out, collecting into pools, and began flowing across the ground toward Percy. The sweet-smelling fumes made his head feel wobbly.**_

" _ **Percy!" Annabeth's voice sounded far away. "Uh, hey, Miss Wonderful! Cheerful! Grins! Over here!"**_

 _ **But the goddess of misery was now fixated on Percy. He tried to retreat again. Unfortunately the poison ichor was flowing all around him now, making the ground steam and the air burn. Percy found himself stuck on an island of dust not much bigger than a shield. A few yards away, his backpack smoked and dissolved into a puddle of goo. Percy had nowhere to go. He fell to one knee. He wanted to tell Annabeth to run, but he couldn't speak. His throat was as dry as dead leaves. He wished there were water in Tartarus-some nice pool he could jump into to heal himself, or maybe a river he could control. He'd settle for a bottle of Evian.**_

"Oh gods no." Somebody said, but everybody was to swept up in the fight to see who.

" _ **You will feed the eternal darkness," Akhlys said. "You will die in the arms of Night!"**_

 _ **He was dimly aware of Annabeth shouting, throwing random pieces of drakon jerky at the goddess. The white-green poison kept pooling, little streams trickling from the plants as the venomous lake around him got wider and wider.**_

 _ **Lake, he thought. Streams. Water.**_

 _ **Probably it was just his brain getting fried from poison fumes, but he croaked out a laugh. Poison was liquid.**_

 _ **If it moved like water, it must be partially water.**_

"You didn't. You couldn't have. It shouldn't be possible." Poseidon said, realizing what Percy was getting at.

 _ **He remembered some science lecture about the human body being mostly water. He remembered extracting water from Jason's lungs back in Rome… If he could control**_ **that,** _ **then why not other liquids?**_

 _ **It was a crazy idea. Poseidon was the god of the sea, not of every liquid everywhere. Then again, Tartarus had its own rules. Fire was drinkable. The ground was the body of a dark god. The air was acid, and demigods could be turned into smoky corpses. So why not try? He had nothing left to lose.**_

 _ **He glared at the poison flood encroaching from all sides. He concentrated so hard that something inside him cracked-as if a crystal ball had shattered in his stomach. Warmth flowed through him. The poison tide stopped. The fumes blew away from him-back toward the goddess. The lake of poison rolled toward her in tiny waves and rivulets.**_

 _ **Akhlys shrieked. "What is this?"**_

" _ **Poison," Percy said. "That's your specialty, right?"**_

 _ **He stood, his anger growing hotter in his gut. As the flood of venom rolled toward the goddess, the fumes began to make her cough. Her eyes watered even more.**_

 _ **Oh, good, Percy thought. More water.**_

 _ **Percy imagined her nose and throat filling with her own tears.**_

 _ **Akhlys gagged. "I-" The tide of venom reached her feet, sizzling like droplets on a hot iron. She wailed and stumbled back.**_

" _ **Percy!" Annabeth called.**_

 _ **She'd retreated to the edge of the cliff, even though the poison wasn't after her. She sounded terrified. It took Percy a moment to realize she was terrified of**_ **him.**

" _ **Stop…" she pleaded, her voice hoarse.**_

 _ **He didn't want to stop. He wanted to choke this goddess. He wanted to watch her drown in her own poison. He wanted to see just how much misery Misery could take.**_

The only thing anybody could seem to do was look at Percy, horrified, but Percy couldn't look at any of them and just focused on the book in his hands.

" _ **Percy, please…." Annabeth's face was still pale and corpse-like, but her eyes were the same as always. The anguish in them made Percy's anger fade. He turned to the goddess. He willed the poison to recede, creating a small path of retreat along the edge of the cliff.**_

" _ **Leave!" he bellowed.**_

 _ **For an emaciated ghoul, Akhlys could run pretty fast when she wanted to. She scrambled along the path, fell on her face, and got up again, wailing as she sped into the dark.**_

 _ **As soon as she was gone, the pools of poison evaporated. The plants withered to dust and blew away. Annabeth stumbled toward him. She looked like a corpse wreathed in smoke, but she felt solid enough when she gripped his arms.**_

" _ **Percy, please don't ever…" Her voice broke in a sob. "Some things aren't meant to be controlled. Please."**_

 _ **His whole body tingled with power, but the anger was subsiding. The broken glass inside him was beginning to smooth at the edges.**_

" _ **Yeah," he said. "Yeah, okay."**_

" _ **We have to get away from this cliff," Annabeth said. "If Akhlys brought us here as some kind of sacrifice…"**_

 _ **Percy tried to think. He was getting used to moving with the Death Mist around him. He felt more solid, more like himself. But his mind still felt stuffed with cotton.**_

" _ **She said something about feeding us to the night," he remembered. "What was that about?"**_

 _ **The temperature dropped. The abyss before them seemed to exhale. Percy grabbed Annabeth and backed away from the edge as a presence emerged from the void-a form so vast and shadowy, he felt like he understood the concept of**_ **dark** _ **for the first time.**_

" _ **I imagine," said the darkness, in a feminine voice as soft as coffin lining, "that she meant Night, with a capital N. After all, I am the only one."**_

Everybody was silent for few minutes, while they were just trying to process what just happened.

"What _was_ that, Percy?" Piper choked out.

Percy didn't have an answer for her. He could only look at her helplessly.

"I-I really don't know, at first it was just about trying to keep us safe, but then something inside me snapped and I really wanted to watch her suffer."

"But, I still don't understand how you were able to control that. You shouldn't have been able to do that." Poseidon said.

"Why do you sound so scared, brother?" Zeus asked him. "What did you do?" he continued immediately getting suspicious.

"Nothing you wouldn't have done." Poseidon replied.

"But you did do something?" Hestia asked softly.

"I had to, he wouldn't have survived without it." Poseidon said.

"What did you do, dad?" Percy interrupted.

Poseidon looked towards him, but he was addressing the rest of the gods.

"You know that we can control the amount of our powers that we pass on to our children, like Aphrodite did with Piper here, or Hephaestus and Leo. There's a reason not all of your kids got powers like charmspeak or fire control, you chose not to, you knew that these kids specifically would need those powers. I did the same thing. I did it partly because I was just excited to have a demigod child again after so long. But then I found out what he was destined for and I decided Percy would be safer if he had a little better control over the water than normal. Hermes, you did the same exact thing with Luke. How many of your children are able to pick open locks by just touching them? But, either way, even with that little extra control over water, Percy, you shouldn't have been able to control any other substances like that, your powers seem to be growing at an exponential rate. That's what scares me."

"You're right, I mean, just a few years ago, when he was twelve, he defeated Ares in single combat, then two years after that, he went head to head with the Titan general Atlas and survived. Just last year, he almost single-handedly destroyed Kronos's army, somehow managing to sustain a mini hurricane around himself while fighting the Titan of light, Hyperion. He even fought against Kronos himself and survived." Hades said.

"What are you trying to say? My sword fighting skills are related to my powers over water? That's crazy." Percy said.

"Is it really all that crazy? I mean, there must be a reason as to why the only sword that feels balanced to you is a sword created in the ocean." Annabeth said, pointing to Percy's pocket where he kept Riptide.

"I mean, that's not even all that he's done, since the Titan war, after losing his memories and the quest in Camp Jupiter, we know that he can even control the waters in Alaska, which as you all know, is out of _our_ sphere of control. We've seen the storms he's created when working with the son of Jupiter. We have no idea what he's truly capable of." Apollo said.

Knowing all of that, everybody was beginning to get a little scared of the son of Poseidon. At the very least, Zeus was thinking of what could happen if Percy ever turned against them, but he, along with everybody else, was scared of what would happen if they suggested hurting him. Poseidon was a terrifying enough enemy, even against most of the other gods together, but they had seen the way people looked up to Percy. Poseidon fighting alongside Percy and the rest of the Seven… They weren't exactly willing to take the chance.

"Look, I understand that I may have gone off the deep end a little down there, but I made a vow to myself, and more importantly to Annabeth, that I would never try to control any other substance. The only thing I'm controlling from now on is water." Percy said.

"We get that, but it's probably best if we keep an eye on you from now on and if you ever go too far again, we might have to intervene." Zeus said.

Percy could only sit there a little stunned, after all of the information that was just revealed.

"Okay, so I don't know about all of that, but what I do know, is that that was terrifying, and I've only heard you _read_ it. I can't even imagine how scary that would have been in real life." Leo said.

"Just hope you never find out." Annabeth told him.

"I mean, I always knew you were powerful, but I had no idea you were _that_ powerful. It'll be okay, man, nobody's going to look at you any differently." Grover said.

"Yeah, this doesn't change anything, I'm still going to destroy in capture the flag every week." Clarisse mentioned.

"See, I told you this wouldn't change anything, Seaweed Brain." Annabeth said to him, quietly.

"Thank you guys. Just...so much. I don't really know wh-what I would do without any of you." Percy told the rest of the demigods, while the gods were busy talking among themselves.

* * *

 _ **AN: The thing is, that most of that was just my own theories, because let's be honest, Percy is way too powerful, even for a child of The Big Three. I mean, Jason, Hazel, Nico, and Thalia come nowhere near the level at where Percy's powers are at. Also, I always found it weird that he could only wield Riptide and nothing else would work. And, I absolutely do believe that Poseidon saw Percy's future, just like Hermes knew about Luke, and gave Percy some extra powers that he normally wouldn't. So, it's finally time for a recommendation, I have no idea if I already talked about this one before and I honestly don't care because it is amazing. It's called**_ **Just Friends by FRICTIONFICTION108.** _ **That was the Percabeth fic that I was distracted by earlier today. Anyways, I think that's enough updates for today, it's time for me to go. I'll see you guys soon.**_


	26. Fear The Night

_**Disclaimer: I don't own anything, Rick Riordan does.**_

 _ **AN: So, I'm back, after getting sucked head first into a new fandom and getting distracted. Last time I updated was wild, I mean, four chapters in one week. Sadly, this time it's only one.**_

 _ **DeadlyHuggles:**_ _ **I see your point about Percy being too OP, but you don't have all the facts, which are I love him. Also, I'm not going to spoil anything about Ship of the Dead, but**_ **the chocolate scene!** _ **That's all thank you.**_

 _ **Prasad:**_ _ **Thank you so much!**_

 _ **Irongirl07:**_ _ **Thank you! But, sadly no, I'm most likely not going to write a story like that, I'm just going to stick to the book reading ones for now.**_

 _ **The evil rainbow:**_ _ **I've just got to say, Deathra sounds either like something out of Skyrim, or just the word death ray unfinished. But either way, it sounds cool as hell.**_

 _ **El1te-Soldier:**_ _ **I would love to do something like that but, for now, I don't think I'm going to do anything other than reading the books fics. If I did do anything like that, including what**_ _ **Irongirl**_ _ **suggested, it would be in the far future.**_

 _ **OceanBlueSeaEyes:**_ _ **Oh my gods yes! I live for the moments when some villain tries to mess with Percy's loved ones. I'm just like, oh honey no, you have no idea what hell you just unleashed upon yourselves. I love it, so much.**_

 _ **Lanalight1:**_ _ **Same, I felt bad for him as well, but the thing is, my reaction to him choking out a goddess was slightly different to yours. I was cheering him on, because he finally let out this super dark side, and I was just like, yes, show me your true power.**_

 _ **KriKri:**_ _ **I have no idea what I was thinking when I decided four chapters in one week was a good idea, but it's so nice to see so many of you guys agree with that idea. Also, I'm in a little bit of pain, because another wise girl split the story up into multiple books and the first book ended the other day, and now, I'm just slowly dying while I wait for the next one.**_

 _ **Lintsu13:**_ _ **Thank you so much!**_

* * *

After a well-deserved impromptu break, Demeter decided that it was time to continue reading, so she made sure everyone was quiet before she picked up the book and started reading.

 _ **Annabeth had never been scared of the dark. But normally the dark wasn't forty feet tall. It didn't have black wings, a whip made out of stars, and a shadowy chariot pulled by vampire horses. Nyx was almost too much to take in. Looming over the chasm, she was a churning figure of ash and smoke, as big as the Athena Parthenos statue, but very much alive. Her dress was void black, mixed with the colors of a space nebula, as if galaxies were being born in her bodice. Her face was hard to see except for the pinpoints of her eyes, which shone like quasars. When her wings beat, waves of darkness rolled over the cliffs, making Annabeth feel heavy and sleepy, her eyesight dim.**_

"That doesn't sound like normal darkness. That sounds like _advanced_ darkness." Frank whispered to himself, worried for his friends.

 _ **The goddess's chariot was made of the same material as Nico di Angelo's sword-Stygian iron-and pulled by two massive horses, all black except for their pointed silver fangs. The beasts' legs floated in the abyss, turning from solid to smoke as they moved. The horses snarled and bared their fangs at Annabeth. The goddess lashed her whip-a thin streak of stars like diamond barbs-and the horses reared back.**_

" _ **No, Shade," the goddess said. "Down, Shadow. These little prizes are not for you."**_

 _ **Percy eyed the horses as they nickered. He was still shrouded in Death Mist, so he looked like an out-of-focus corpse-which broke Annabeth's heart every time she saw him. It also must not have been very good camouflage, since Nyx could obviously see them.**_

 _ **Annabeth couldn't read the expression on Percy's ghoulish face very well. Apparently he didn't like whatever the horses were saying.**_

" _ **Uh, so you won't let them eat us?" he asked the goddess. "They really want to eat us."**_

 _ **Nyx's quasar eyes burned. "Of course not. I would not let my horses eat you, any more than I would let Akhlys kill you. Such fine prizes, I will kill myself!"**_

"Ooh, that's never a good thing, having the personal attention of a primordial being." Calypso winced.

"Wait, you've _met_ one of the primordials." Leo asked, shocked.

"Well, _obviously not,_ I was just going based off of her description, which is admittedly terrifying." Calypso replied.

 _ **Annabeth didn't feel particularly witty or courageous, but her instincts told her to take the initiative, or this would be a very short conversation.**_

" _ **Oh, don't kill yourself!" she cried. "We're not**_ **that** _ **scary."**_

 _ **The goddess lowered her whip. "What? No, I didn't mean-"**_

" _ **Well, I'd hope not!" Annabeth looked at Percy and forced a laugh. "We wouldn't want to scare her, would we?"**_

" _ **Ha, ha," Percy said weakly. "No, we wouldn't"**_

 _ **The vampire horses looked confused. They reared and snorted and knocked their dark heads together. Nyx pulled back on the reins.**_

" _ **Do you know who I am?" she demanded.**_

" _ **Well, you're Night, I suppose," said Annabeth. "I mean, I can tell because you're**_ **dark** _ **and everything, though the brochure didn't say much about you."**_

"You didn't tell me there was a brochure, I love brochures, being the god of travel and all." Hermes said, getting excited.

"There were no brochures." Annabeth said, stopping the god's thoughts in their tracks.

"Don't mislead me like that next time." Hermes pouted.

 _ **Nyx's eyes winked out for a moment. "What brochure?"**_

 _ **Annabeth patted her pockets. "We had one, didn't we?"**_

 _ **Percy licked his lips. "Uh-huh."**_

 _ **He was still watching the horses, his hand tight on his sword hilt, but he was smart enough to follow Annabeth's lead. Now she just had to hope she wasn't making things worse...though honestly, she didn't see how things**_ **could** _ **be worse.**_

" _ **Anyway," she said, "I guess the brochure didn't say much, because you weren't spotlighted on the tour. We got to see the River Phlegethon, the Cocytus, the**_ **arai,** _ **the poison glade of Akhlys, even some random Titans and giants, but Nyx...hmm, no, you weren't really featured."**_

" **Featured? Spotlighted?"**

" _ **Yeah," Percy said, warming up to the idea. "We came down here for the Tartarus tour-like, exotic destinations, you know? The Underworld is overdone. Mount Olympus is a tourist trap-"**_

"I know, right! But, Tartarus Tours has a nice ring to it, don't you think?" Hermes asked.

"No! I mean, yeah, totally, it sounds like a great idea, except for the fact that most people that took the tour wouldn't make it out alive, so I guess you can't do that. Sorry, Lord Hermes." Jason said, trying to prevent one of the worst ideas the god had ever had.

" _ **God, totally!" Annabeth agreed. "So we booked the Tartarus excursion, but no one even mentioned we'd run into Nyx. Huh. Oh, well. Guess they didn't think you were important."**_

" _ **Not important!" Nyx cracked her whip. Her horses bucked and snapped their silvery fangs. Waves of darkness rolled out of the chasm, turning Annabeth's insides to jelly, but she couldn't show her fear.**_

 _ **She pushed down Percy's sword arm, forcing him to lower his weapon. This was a goddess beyond anything they had ever faced. Nyx was older than any Olympian or Titan or giant, older even than Gaea. She couldn't be defeated by two demigods-at least not two demigods using**_ **force.**

 _ **Annabeth made herself look at the goddess's massive dark face.**_

" _ **Well, how many other demigods have come to see you on the tour?" she asked innocently.**_

 _ **Nyx's hand went slack on the reins. "None. Not one. This is unacceptable!"**_

 _ **Annabeth shrugged. "Maybe it's because you haven't really**_ **done** _ **anything to get in the news. I mean, I can understand Tartarus being important! This whole place is named after him. Or, if we could meet Day-"**_

" _ **Oh, yeah," Percy chimed in. "Day? She would be impressive. I'd totally want to meet her. Maybe get her autograph."**_

" _ **Day!" Nyx gripped the rail of her black chariot. The whole vehicle shuddered.**_

" _ **You mean Hemera? She is my daughter! Night is much more powerful than Day!"**_

" _ **Eh," said Annabeth. "I liked the**_ **arai,** _ **or even Akhlys better."**_

" _ **They are my children as well!"**_

 _ **Percy stifled a yawn. "Got a lot of children, huh?"**_

"Son, did you just imply that Nyx, the ancient all powerful being of darkness, _sleeps around_?" Poseidon asked incredulously.

"I mean, I'm not going to comment on her personal life, but I'm just saying she _does_ have a lot of children." Percy defended.

" _ **I am the mother of all terrors!" Nyx cried. "The Fates themselves! Hecate! Old Age! Pain! Sleep! Death! And all of the curses! Behold how newsworthy I am!"**_

"See! Even more children! I guess having that many kids just comes with the territory of being as old as the universe." Percy said.

Grover interrupted before anyone else could say anything even mildly offensive.

" _Anyways,_ before you accidentally piss off some other immortal, all powerful being, let's just move on to the next chapter, please."

* * *

 _ **AN: I feel kinda bad about having this chapter be so light-hearted after how heavy the last few chapters were, but I just couldn't pass up the opportunities that this chapter presented. To match this chapter, I'm going to recommend a light-hearted Percabeth fluff-fic called,**_ **Magicians Never Reveal Their Secrets by Just Another Wise Girl. (There are a lot of "Another Wise Girls" out there. Weird.)** _ **So, anyways, I'll see you guys soon.**_


	27. Tourist Traps

_**Disclaimer: I don't own anything, Rick Riordan does.**_

 _ **AN: Hey, so I'm thinking of what I'm going to do after this story is over (which is surprisingly soon) and I think I might do one of the books from the original PJO series, I'm not sure which one yet, though.**_

 _ **KriKri:**_ _ **Thank you, A+ for rhyming skills btw. Apparently there's multiple sequels for Memories, so we're in for a wild ride. Don't cry, have another chapter.**_

 _ **DeadlyHuggles:**_ _ **You should definitely re-read the original series, it's always amazing. I've said it before, and I'll say it again, the Ship of the Dead will always be FierroChase. And Hearth and Blitzen are practically canon anyways, so you're not doing anything wrong.**_

 _ **Lintsu13:**_ _ **Thank you so much!**_

 _ **OceanBlueSeaEyes:**_ _ **I absolutely love when people get so close to each other that they start to act like them a little bit, like I feel like Annabeth was definitely a lot more sarcastic than she was before and Percy was making a lot of devious plans whereas before he would just say fuck it and think about it later.**_

* * *

"You know what? Since you're the one that wants everybody to move on to the next chapter, you can read the next chapter." Demeter told Grover.

"Sure, I'm totally cool with that." Grover said with a surprising lack of sarcasm.

 _ **Nyx lashed her whip again. The darkness congealed around her. On either side, an army of shadows appeared-more dark-winged**_ **arai,** _ **which Annabeth was not that thrilled to see; a withered man who must have been Geras, the god of old age; and a younger woman in a black toga, her eyes gleaming and her smile like a serial killer's-no doubt Eris, the goddess of strife. More kept appearing: dozens of demons and minor gods, each one the spawn of Night.**_

"Wow. So, not gonna lie, and no offense of course, but it totally sounds like you two are about to die a horribly painful death." Calypso said.

"Oh, none taken, situations like that are more common than you think." Annabeth replied.

The gods shared a tense look after how easily and casually that comment was said.

 _ **Annabeth wanted to run. She was facing a brood of horrors that could snap anyone's sanity. But if she ran, she would die. Next to her, Percy's breathing turned shallow. Even through his misty ghoul disguise, Annabeth could tell he was on the verge of panic. She had to stand her ground for both of them.**_

 _ **I am a daughter of Athena, she thought. I control my own mind.**_

 _ **She imagined a mental frame around what she was seeing. She told herself it was just a movie-a scary movie, sure, but it could not hurt her. She was in control.**_

" _ **Yeah, not bad," she admitted. "I guess we could get one picture for the scrapbook, but I don't know. You guys are so...**_ **dark.** _ **Even if I used a flash, I'm not sure it would come out."**_

" _ **Y-yeah," Percy managed. "You guys aren't photogenic."**_

" _ **You-miserable-tourists!" Nyx hissed. "How dare you not tremble before me! How dare you not whimper and beg for my autograph and a picture for your scrapbook! You want**_ **newsworthy?** _ **My son Hypnos once put Zeus to sleep! When Zeus pursued him across the earth, bent on vengeance, Hypnos hid in**_ **my** _ **palace for safety, and Zeus did not follow. Even the king of Olympus fears me!"**_

"She's lying...obviously. As if I, the King of the Gods, would ever be scared of any being ever imagined. That's ridiculous. Absolutely laughable." Zeus spluttered, denying any fear he might or might not have.

"You know, I once thought of a quote that I think would fit perfectly in this situation: "I think the King doth protest too much." And then as you all know that foolish writer...uh, who was it again? Willis Waverlance? Yeah, that's who it was, decided to change my amazing work to fit his own story. But, that's a story for another time." Apollo said.

" _ **Uh-huh." Annabeth turned to Percy. "Well, it's getting late. We should probably get lunch at one of those restaurants the tour guide recommended. Then we can find the Doors of Death."**_

" _ **Aha!" Nyx cried in triumph. Her brood of shadows stirred and echoed: "Aha! Aha!"**_

"They sound like some new species of owls." Athena said annoyed at the resemblance to her sacred animal.

" _ **You wish to see the Doors of Death?" Nyx asked. "They lie at the very heart of Tartarus. Mortals such as you could never reach them, except through the halls of my palace-the Mansion of Night!"**_

 _ **She gestured behind her. Floating in the abyss, maybe three hundred feet below, was a doorway of black marble, leading into some sort of large room. Annabeth's heart pounded so strongly she felt it in her toes. That was the way forward-but it was so far down, an impossible jump. If they missed, they would fall into Chaos and be scattered into nothingness-a final death with no do-over. Even if they could make the jump, the goddess of night and her most fearsome children stood in their way.**_

 _ **With a jolt, Annabeth realized what needed to happen. Like everything she'd ever done, it was a long shot. In a way, that calmed her down. A crazy idea in the face of death?**_

 **Okay,** _ **her body seemed to say, relaxing.**_ **This is familiar territory.**

"I feel like that's the part of you that's slowly becoming Percy talking." Thalia said.

"Oh, shut up." Annabeth replied with a perfectly mature response.

 _ **She managed a bored sigh. "I suppose we could do one picture, but a group shot won't work. Nyx, how about one of you with your favorite child? Which one is that?"**_

"That's just not right, asking her to pick her favorite child." Clarisse smirked at Annabeth.

"Hey, whatever works, right?" Percy said.

 _ **The brood rustled. Dozens of horrible glowing eyes turned toward Nyx. The goddess shifted uncomfortably, as if her chariot were heating up under her feet. Her shadow horses huffed and pawed at the void.**_

" _ **My favorite child?" she asked. "**_ **All** _ **my children are terrifying!"**_

 _ **Percy snorted. "Seriously? I've met the Fates. I've met Thanatos. They weren't so scary. You've got to have somebody in this crowd who's worse than that."**_

" _ **The darkest," Annabeth said. "The most like you."**_

" _ **I am the darkest," hissed Eris. "Wars and strife! I have caused all manner of death!"**_

" _ **I am darker still!" snarled Geras. " I dim the eyes and addle the brain. Every mortal fears old age!"**_

" _ **Yeah, yeah," Annabeth said, trying to ignore her chattering teeth. "I'm not seeing enough dark. I mean, you're the children of Night! Show me dark!"**_

 _ **The horde of**_ **arai** _ **wailed, flapping their leathery wings and stirring up clouds of blackness. Geras spread his withered hands and dimmed the entire abyss. Eris breathed a shadowy spray of buckshot across the void.**_

" _ **I am the darkest!" hissed one of the demons.**_

" _ **No, I!"**_

" _ **No! Behold my darkness!"**_

 _ **If a thousand giant octopuses had squirted ink at the same time, at the bottom of the deepest, most sunless ocean trench, it could not have been blacker. Annabeth might as well have been blind. She gripped Percy's hand and steeled her nerves.**_

" _ **Wait!" Nyx called, suddenly panicked. "I can't see anything."**_

" _ **Yes!" shouted one of her children proudly. "I did that!"**_

" _ **No, I did!"**_

" _ **Fool, it was me!"**_

 _ **Dozens of voices argued in the darkness. The horses whinnied in alarm.**_

" _ **Stop it!" Nyx yelled. "Whose foot is that?"**_

" _ **Eris is hitting me!" cried someone. "Mother, tell her to stop hitting me!"**_

" _ **I did**_ **not!"** _ **yelled Eris. "Ouch!"**_

 _ **The sounds of scuffling got louder. If possible, the darkness became even deeper. Annabeth's eyes dilated so much, they felt like they were being pulled out of their sockets.**_

 _ **She squeezed Percy's hand. "Ready?"**_

" _ **For what?" After a pause, he grunted unhappily. "Poseidon's underpants, you can't be serious."**_

" _ **Somebody give me light!" Nyx screamed. "Gah! I can't believe I just said that!"**_

" _ **It's a trick!" Eris yelled. "The demigods are escaping!"**_

" _ **I've got them," screamed an**_ **arai.**

" _ **No, that's my neck!" Geras gagged.**_

" _ **Jump!" Annabeth told Percy.**_

 _ **They leaped into the darkness, aiming for the doorway far, far below.**_

"You guys seem to end up near cliffs a lot, don't you? I mean there was the tunnel of love, the cliff on Polyphemus's island, the whole westover hall thing, Colorado, Olympus.. The list just goes on." Grover commented.

"Well, we can't really help where the situation takes us, can we G-man?" Percy said.

"Yeah, I guess you're right."

* * *

 _ **AN: I just realized how MoA and HoH really humanize Percy, because for the previous seven books, you see him grow into this all powerful god-like hero, and you almost forget that he's meant to be part human as well. But, HoH showed that he gets scared of the monsters he faces and that he's not actually all-powerful and that he has more faults than we may have realized. That just made me love this book even more. Anyways, I'm gonna recommend**_ **Problems, Taco Soup, and Snapchat by SomethingMoreCreative** _ **for this chapter. See you guys soon.**_


	28. The Mansion of Night

_**Disclaimer: I don't own anything, Rick Riordan does.**_

 _ **AN: Hey there, it's me, ya boi, the most inconsistent writer you know, back at it again with another late chapter.**_

 _ **DeadlyHuggles:**_ _ **Didn't all of the homeless people that Magnus knew already consider Hearth and Blitzen his mom and dad? They've been married for longer than we realized. I feel like throughout the entire series, Percy and Annabeth are built up to be the most powerful and then once they're alone together in Tartarus, we get to see the breakdown of their characters and that's why HoH is one of my favorites from any of Rick's series'. I hope you got a chance to re-read the first series and happy late birthday. It's weird because my birthday is on the 24th and most people I've met don't have late november birthdays. Hope you had a great thanksgiving!**_

 _ **OceanBlueSeaEyes:**_ _ **That's exactly why, even after 8 years, they're my all time favorite couple.**_

 _ **Adityade342:**_ _ **Thank you! You know, that was actually the reason I started writing this story, because I was looking for a reading of the House of Hades and the only one I found was deleted a few days later.**_

 _ **KriKri:**_ _ **I'm doing good. Wait, she did? I'm going to have to go and read that story now, there needs to be more time in the day.**_

* * *

"HEY! Shut up everybody, we need to get this book done soon because as much as I want to know what happens next, I kinda want to go back to living in a place where time isn't frozen. It really messes with your head." Thalia said.

"I guess you can read next, Piper." Grover told her while handing her the book.

 _ **After their fall into Tartarus, jumping three hundred feet to the Mansion of Night should have felt quick. Instead, Annabeth's heart seemed to slow down. Between the beats she had ample time to write her own obituary.**_

 **Annabeth Chase, died age 17.**

 **BA-BOOM.**

 _ **(Assuming her birthday, July 12, had passed while she was in Tartarus; but honestly, she had no idea.)**_

 **BA-BOOM.**

 **Died of massive injuries while leaping like an idiot into the abyss of Chaos and splattering on the entry hall floor of Nyx's mansion.**

 **BA-BOOM.**

 **Survived by her father, stepmother, and two stepbrothers who barely knew her.**

 **BA-BOOM.**

 **In lieu of flowers, please send donations to Camp Half-Blood, assuming Gaea hasn't already destroyed it.**

"You know, even for an obituary, that was kind of dark." Nico said.

 _ **Her feet hit solid floor. Pain shot up her legs, but she stumbled forward and broke into a run, hauling Percy after her. Above them in the dark, Nyx and her children scuffled and yelled, "I've got them! My foot! Stop it!"**_

 _ **Annabeth kept running. She couldn't see anyway, so she closed her eyes. She used her other senses-listening for the echo of open spaces, feeling for cross-breezes against her face, sniffling for any scent of danger-smoke, or poison, or the stench of demons. It wasn't the first time she'd plunged through darkness. She imagined she was back in the tunnels under Rome, searching out the Athena Parthenos. In retrospect, her journey to Arachne's cavern seemed like a trip to Disneyland. The squabbling sounds of Nyx's children got farther away. That was good. Percy was still running at her side, holding her hand. Also good.**_

"Okay, that's good, you need to keep focusing on the good things, otherwise the Mansion will try to find ways for you to open your eyes. Trust me, you don't want to see what lives in the darkness of Nyx's Mansion." Apollo added when he noticed some questioning looks.

 _ **In the distance ahead of them, Annabeth began to hear a throbbing sound, like her own heartbeat echoing back, amplified so powerfully, the floor vibrated underfoot. The sound filled her with dread, so she figured it must be the right way to go. She ran toward it. As the beat got louder, she smelled smoke and heard the flickering of torches on either side. She guessed there would be light, but a crawling sensation across her neck warned her it would be a mistake to open her eyes.**_

" _ **Don't look," she told Percy.**_

" _ **Wasn't planning on it," he said. "You can feel that, right? We're still in the Mansion of Night. I do**_ **not** _ **want to see it."**_

 _ **Smart boy, Annabeth thought. She used to tease Percy for being dumb, but in truth his instincts were usually right on target. Whatever horrors lay in the Mansion of Night, they weren't meant for mortal eyes. Seeing them would be worse than staring at the face of Medusa. Better to run in darkness. The throbbing got louder still, sending vibrations straight up Annabeth's spine.**_

 _ **It felt like someone was knocking on the bottom of the world, demanding to be let in. She sensed the walls opening up on either side of them. The air smelled fresher-or at least not quite as sulfurous. There was another sound, too, closer than the deep pulsing….the sound of flowing water.**_

Poseidon let out an audible sigh of relief when he heard the word water come out of Piper's mouth.

 _ **Annabeth's heart raced. She knew the exit was close. If they could make it out of the Mansion of Night, maybe they could leave the dark brood of demons behind. She began to run faster, which would have meant her death if Percy hadn't stopped her.**_

"Okay, so I'm absolutely not stopping there, because ending chapters that way is just not good for my health. At all." Piper said.

* * *

 _ **AN: So, it's thanksgiving break, so I'm going to try, keyword being try, to get out more chapters before it's over. Also, I just now realized how short this chapter actually is, and I'm sorry about that. I'm gonna recommend**_ **Goode Highschool for Exceptional Children by The Artemis.** _ **Sadly, I don't think it was ever finished, but it was still a really great story. See you guys soon.**_


	29. The Heart of Tartarus

_**Disclaimer: I don't own anything, Rick Riordan does.**_

 _ **AN: I actually got another chapter done. I'm happy.**_

 _ **DeadlyHuggles:**_ _ **Percy's birthday still doesn't make any sense, I need an explanation from Rick. You know, the funny thing is that I actually wasn't fan of Jason until this book, because he finally got some character development. Before it just seemed like Jason was this stranger with no opinions about anything doing these heroic actions, but he was much better character after this book and I do like him now. Yeah, it's hard enough for people to come out now, it was probably much harder for Nico to do it, since he came from a different time period entirely.**_

 _ **Guest:**_ _ **Thank you! Yeah, I'm only doing Percy and Annabeth's chapters, so the story will most likely end with them riding out of Tartarus in an elevator.**_

 _ **Lintsu13:**_ _ **Thank you!**_

 _ **KriKri:**_ _ **To be honest, by this point I don't remember what you said either. Yeah, I hate that the last chapter was so short, but that's the book, luckily this one is a little bit longer.**_

 _ **OceanBlueSeaEyes:**_ _ **I think Percy just seemed a bit slow because he knew very little about the demigod world, but I think he was pretty smart otherwise. But you're right, he did get better at it by being with Annabeth.**_

* * *

"Well, get to reading!" Zeus commanded.

"Did you really need all of the thunder to say that just now? Like, was it really that necessary?" Piper asked him before she continued reading.

" _ **Annabeth!" Percy pulled her back just as her foot hit the edge of a drop-off. She almost pitched forward into who-knew-what, but Percy grabbed her and wrapped her in his arms.**_

"Okay, that's better. Was it really so hard to put that in the last chapter, I mean if you were going to say in the first paragraph of the next chapter, you could just put it in at the end of the last chapter." Piper said, still hung up on the cliffhanger from the last chapter.

" _ **It's okay," he promised.**_

 _ **She pressed her face into his shirt and kept her eyes closed tight. She was trembling, but not just from fear. Percy's embrace was so warm and comforting she wanted to stay there forever, safe and protected….but that wasn't reality. She couldn't afford to relax. She couldn't lean on Percy any more than she had to. He needed**_ **her,** _ **too.**_

" _ **Thanks…." She gently disentangled herself from his arms. "Can you tell what's in front of us?"**_

" _ **Water," he said. "I'm still not looking. I don't think it's safe yet."**_

" _ **Agreed."**_

" _ **I can sense a river...or maybe it's a moat. It's blocking our path, flowing left to right through a channel cut in the rock. The opposite side is about twenty feet away."**_

 _ **Annabeth mentally scolded herself. She'd heard the flowing water, but she had never considered she might be running headlong into it.**_

" _ **Is there a bridge, or-?"**_

" _ **I don't think so," Percy said. "And there's something wrong with the water. Listen."**_

 _ **Annabeth concentrated. Within the roaring current, thousands of voices cried out-shrieking in agony, pleading for mercy.**_

 **Help!** _ **they groaned.**_ **It was an accident! The pain!** _ **Their voices wailed.**_ **Make it stop!**

 _ **Annabeth didn't need her eyes to visualize the river-a black briny current filled with tortured souls being swept deeper and deeper into Tartarus.**_

"The question is, which river is it?" Frank said.

" _ **The River Acheron," she guessed. "The fifth river of the Underworld."**_

"Oh, well, I guess that answers that."

" _ **I liked the Phlegethon better than this," Percy muttered.**_

" _ **It's the River of Pain. The ultimate punishment for the souls of the damned-murderers, especially."**_

 **Murderers!** _ **the river wailed.**_ **Yes, like you!**

 **Join us,** _ **another voice whispered.**_ **You are no better than we are.**

"Don't listen to them, you're nothing like them, they're just trying to lure you into the river." Hazel said.

 _ **Annabeth's head was flooded with images of all the monsters she'd killed over the years.**_

 **That wasn't murder,** _ **she protested.**_ **I was defending myself!**

 _ **The river changed course through her mind-showing her Zoë Nightshade, who had been slain on Mount Tamalpais because she'd come to rescue Annabeth from the Titans. She saw Nico's sister, Bianca di Angelo, dying in the collapse of the metal giant Talos, because she also had tried to save Annabeth. Michael Yew and Silena Beauregard...who had died in the Battle of Manhattan.**_

 **You could have prevented it,** _ **the river told Annabeth.**_ **You should have seen a better way.**

 _ **Most painful of all: Luke Castellan. Annabeth remembered Luke's blood on her dagger after he'd sacrificed himself to stop Kronos from destroying Olympus.**_

 **His blood is on your hands!** _ **the river wailed.**_ **There should have been another way!**

 _ **Annabeth had wrestled with the same thought many times. She'd tried to convince herself Luke's death wasn't her fault. Luke had chosen his fate. Still...she didn't know if his soul had found peace in the Underworld, or if he'd been reborn, or if he'd been washed into Tartarus because of his crimes. He might be one of the tortured voices flowing past right now.**_

"I can tell you right now, from what I remember, he's either in the Fields of Asphodel, or Elysium. There's too many of them to remember for sure." Hades sort of confirmed.

 **You murdered him!** _ **the river cried.**_ **Jump in and share his punishment!**

 _ **Percy gripped her arm. "Don't listen."**_

" _ **But-"**_

" _ **I know." His voice sounded as brittle as ice. "They're telling me the same stuff. I think….I think this moat must be the border of Night's territory. If we get across, we should be okay. We'll have to jump."**_

" _ **You said it was twenty feet!"**_

" _ **Yeah. You'll have to trust me. Put your arms around my neck and hang on."**_

" _ **How can you possibly-"**_

" _ **There!" cried a voice behind them. "Kill the ungrateful tourists!"**_

 _ **The children of Nyx had found them. Annabeth wrapped her arms around Percy's neck.**_

" _ **Go!"**_

 _ **With her eyes closed, she could only guess how he managed it. Maybe he used the force of the river somehow. Maybe he was just scared out of his mind and charged with adrenaline. Percy leaped with more strength than she would have thought possible. They sailed through the air as the river churned and wailed below them, splashing Annabeth's bare ankles with stinging brine. Then-CLUMP. They were on solid ground again.**_

"Wait, you actually just jumped over twenty feet over a river while carrying somebody else. What can't you do at this point?" Leo said, shocked.

" _ **You can open your eyes," Percy said, breathing hard. "But you won't like what you see."**_

 _ **Annabeth blinked. After the darkness of Nyx, even the dim red glow of Tartarus seemed blinding. Before them stretched a valley big enough to fit the San Francisco Bay. The booming noise came from the entire landscape, as if thunder were echoing from beneath the ground. Under poisonous clouds, the rolling terrain glistened purple with dark red and blue scar lines.**_

" _ **It looks like…" Annabeth fought down her revulsion. "Like a giant heart."**_

" _ **The heart of Tartarus," Percy murmured.**_

"You know, I figured that Tartarus would be big, but this really puts it into perspective." Demeter said.

 _ **The center of the valley was covered with a fine black fuzz of peppery dots. They were so far away, it took Annabeth a moment to realize she was looking at an army-thousands, maybe tens of thousands of monsters, gathered around a central pinpoint of darkness. It was too far to see any details, but Annabeth had no doubt what the pinpoint was. Even from the edge of the valley, Annabeth could feel its power tugging at her soul.**_

" _ **The Doors of Death."**_

" _ **Yeah." Percy's voice was hoarse. He still had the pale, wasted complexion of a corpse...which meant he looked about as good as Annabeth felt.**_

 _ **She realized she'd forgotten all about their pursuers. "What happened to Nyx…?"**_

 _ **She turned. Somehow they'd landed several hundred yards from the banks of Acheron, which flowed through a channel cut into black volcanic hills. Beyond that was nothing but darkness. No sign of anyone coming after them. Apparently even the minions of Night didn't like to cross the Acheron. She was about to ask Percy how he had jumped so far when she heard the skittering of a rockslide in the hills to their left. She drew her drakon-sword. Percy raised Riptide.**_

"Oh gods, what is it now?" Jason groaned.

 _ **A patch of glowing white hair appeared over the ridge, then a familiar grinning face with pure silver eyes.**_

" _ **Bob?" Annabeth was so happy she actually jumped. "Oh my gods!"**_

"Oh, something good for once." A surprised Jason answered himself.

" _ **Friends!" The Titan lumbered toward them. The bristles of his broom had been burned off. His janitor's uniform was slashed with new claw marks, but he looked delighted. On his shoulder, Small Bob the kitten purred almost as loudly as the pulsing heart of Tartarus.**_

" _ **I found you!" Bob gathered them both in a rib-crushing hug. "You look like smoking dead people. That is good!"**_

" _ **Urf," Percy said. "How did you get here? Through the Mansion of Night?"**_

" _ **No, no." Bob shook his head adamantly. "That place is too scary. Another way-only good for Titans and such."**_

"So, a Titan thinks the Mansion of Night is too scary, that place just sounds better and better." Thalia said.

" _ **Let me guess," Annabeth said. "You went sideways."**_

 _ **Bob scratched his chin, evidently at a loss for words. "Hmm. No. More...**_ **diagonal."**

 _ **Annabeth laughed. Here they were at the heart of Tartarus, facing an impossible army-she would take any comfort she could get. She was ridiculously glad to have Bob the Titan with them again. She kissed his immortal nose, which made him blink.**_

" _ **We stay together now?" he asked.**_

" _ **Yes," Annabeth agreed. "Time to see if this Death Mist works."**_

" _ **And if it doesn't…" Percy stopped himself.**_

 _ **There was no point in wondering about that. They were about to march into the middle of an enemy army. If they were spotted, they were dead. Despite that, Annabeth managed a smile. Their goal was in sight. They had a Titan with a broom and a very loud kitten on their side. That had to count for something.**_

" _ **Doors of Death," she said, "here we come."**_

"See, now that's a much better way to end a chapter, it doesn't leave me panicking and worried for your lives." Piper said.

"You need to get your priorities in order, they're about to walk into the middle of a monster army and you're talking about the way a chapter ended." Grover said, chuckling.

"Hey, they are in order, the way the chapter ended was just a temporary important thing." Piper replied.

* * *

 _ **AN: I have no idea what happened at the end of that just now, but we're really close to the end of the story now, which is wild. This time, I'm gonna recommend**_ **Artificial Engagement by Akatsuki Child.** _ **See you guys soon.**_


	30. Hope and Hopelessness

_**Disclaimer: I don't own anything, Rick Riordan does.**_

 _ **AN: So, I just finished catching up on Another Wise Girl's new story Dreams. Gods, I love that story.**_

 _ **Valeria888:**_ _ **Thank you!**_

 _ **OceanBlueSeaEyes:**_ _ **I Will Not Bow works so well for them, I hadn't even thought about it. You know, another one that I think might fit them pretty well is Freakshow by Skillet. I heard it for the first time the other day and I love the song so much now. Thank you, that means a lot that you're going to be keeping up with any future stories, and the truth is that I'm most likely only going to stick with the reading the books stories.**_

 _ **Lintsu13:**_ _ **Thank you!**_

 _ **KriKri:**_ _ **Thank you! I can't believe that I'm actually near the end, it feels like I just started this last week but that was actually all the way back in May, it's wild. As for what I'm going to do next, I was actually thinking about leaving that up to you guys, like a reader's choice. And I know, it was so good, I'm sad it was never finished. By the way, I saw your review on Dreams and just so you know, you're one of my favorite people now.**_

 _ **Percabeth824:**_ _ **Thank you!**_

 _ **Michaelan:**_ _ **Thank you! It's always great to see new people reading the story.**_

 _ **Pendragon:**_ _ **Thank you! I've been thinking about what I'm going to do for something like that, because I've been meaning to do it for so long, it's just hard for me to find a way to put it into the story. But trust me, I'm working on it.**_

 _ **DeadlyHuggles:**_ _ **That's going to be**_ **such** _ **a fun time for all of them, isn't it? I agree about Jason, I don't love him as much as some of the other characters, but I do like him, unlike Octavian, who wasn't even important enough to have a last name, even though he was meant to be one of the primary villains in the books. That's true, it probably is one of the easiest times to come out right now, but good luck with your cousins and that sucks if you end up being right about them.**_

* * *

Everybody was settling in after coming back from a snack break. Grover was just talking to Percy, trying to catch up with him about everything that had been happening over the last few chapters.

"So, what I still don't understand, is how you controlled the Cocytus River so easily." Grover was saying.

"Well, I wouldn't say _easily._ But, I guess it was just like with the Lethe, I just thought about controlling it otherwise Annabeth and I would have both died, and it just happened." Percy said.

"Wait, when did you control the River Lethe?" Leo asked, overhearing Grover and Percy talking.

"Oh, that was when I was in the Underworld last. Nico and Thalia were actually there, albeit a bit distracted." Percy answered.

"You say that like going to the Underworld is common for you." Leo laughed uncertainly.

"Well, that would have been the third, or was it fifth-" Percy started.

"I feel like I'm the only one who hasn't read yet, so I guess I'll take it." Calypso interrupted when she realized everyone was waiting on Percy and Leo to stop talking..

 _ **Percy wasn't dead yet, but he was already tired of being a corpse. As they trudged toward the heart of Tartarus, he kept glancing down at his body, wondering how it could belong to him. His arms looked like bleached leather pulled over sticks. His skeletal legs seemed to dissolve into smoke with every step. He'd learned to move normally within the Death Mist, more or less, but the magical shroud still made him feel like he was wrapped in a coat of helium. He worried that the Death Mist might cling to him forever, even if they somehow managed to survive Tartarus. He didn't want to spend the rest of his life looking like an extra from**_ **The Walking Dead.**

"Wait, you guys have _The Walking Dead?"_ Zeus asked.

"Yeah…?" Thalia trailed off, confused.

"So, we're in _that_ universe…" Zeus muttered to himself.

 _ **Percy tried to focus on something else, but there was no safe direction to look. Under his feet, the ground glistened with webs of veins. In the dim red light of the blood clouds, Death Mist Annabeth looked like a freshly risen zombie. Ahead of them was the most depressing view of all.**_

"I was unaware that that was possible at this point." Artemis said.

"Well, it did, sadly." Nico said.

 _ **Spread to the horizon was an army of monsters-flocks of winged**_ **arai,** _ **tribes of lumbering Cyclopes, clusters of floating evil spirits. Thousands of baddies, maybe**_ **tens** _ **of thousands, all milling restlessly, pressing against one another, growling and fighting for space-like the locker area of an overcrowded school between classes, if all the students were 'roid-ragin mutants who smelled**_ **really** _ **bad.**_

"Trust me, I've been in enough school to know what I'm talking about." Percy mentioned.

 _ **Bob led them toward the edge of the army. He made no effort to hide, not that it would have done any good. Being ten feet tall and glowing silver, Bob didn't do stealth very well.**_

 _ **About thirty yards from the nearest monsters, Bob turned to face Percy.**_

" _ **Stay quiet and stay behind me," he advised. "They will not notice you."**_

" _ **We hope," Percy muttered.**_

 _ **On the Titan's shoulder, Small Bob woke up from a nap. He purred seismically and arched his back, turning skeletal then back to calico. At least**_ **he** _ **didn't seem nervous.**_

 _ **Annabeth examined her own zombie hands. "Bob, if we're invisible...how can**_ **you** _ **see us? I mean, you're technically, you know…"**_

" _ **Yes," Bob said. "But we are friends."**_

" _ **Nyx and her children could see us," Annabeth said.**_

 _ **Bob shrugged. "That was in Nyx's realm. That is different."**_

" _ **Uh...right."**_

"That doesn't give much hope about the Death Mist working." Poseidon said, nervously.

"Yes, that is slightly worrying, but I'm sure they worked it out somehow, considering the fact that they're sitting right in front of us." Athena added.

 _ **Annabeth didn't sound reassured, but they were here now. They didn't have any choice but to try.**_

 _ **Percy stared at the swarm of vicious monsters. "Well, at least we won't have to worry about bumping into any other**_ **friends** _ **in this crowd."**_

 _ **Bob grinned. "Yes, that is good news! Now, let's go. Death is close."**_

" _ **The**_ **Doors** _ **of Death are close," Annabeth corrected. "Let's watch the phrasing."**_

"Let's not say it like they're about to die, please and thank you." Calypso said.

 _ **They plunged into the crowd. Percy trembled so badly, he was afraid the Death Mist would shake right off him. He'd seen large groups of monsters before. He'd fought an army of them during the Battle of Manhattan. But this was different. Whenever he'd fought monsters in the mortal world, Percy at least knew he was defending his home. That gave him courage, no matter how bad the odds were. Here,**_ **Percy** _ **was the invader. He didn't belong in this multitude of monsters any more than the Minotaur belonged in Penn Station at rush hour.**_

 _ **A few feet away, a group of**_ **empousai** _ **tore into the carcass of a gryphon while other gryphons flew around them, squawking in outrage. A six-armed Earthborn and a Laistrygonian giant pummeled each other with rocks, though Percy wasn't sure if they were fighting or just messing around. A dark wisp of smoke-Percy guessed it must be an eidolon-seeped into a Cyclops, made the monster hit himself in the face, then drifted off to possess another victim.**_

"So, none of that sounds good, especially the Laistrygonians and the eidolons." Jason said. "But, they should be safe from the eidolons because of the oath on the River Styx that Piper made them promise to, right? Unless, River Styx oaths work differently in Tartarus."

"I think you should stop theorizing, so that we're not more worried than we were before." Frank said to save his own sanity.

 _ **Annabeth whispered, "Percy, look."**_

 _ **A stone's throw away, a guy in a cowboy outfit was cracking a whip at some fire-breathing horses. The wrangler wore a Stetson hat on his greasy hair, an extra-large set of jeans, and a pair of black leather boots. From the side, he might have passed for human-until he turned, and Percy saw that his upper body was split into three different chests, each one dressed in a different-color Western shirt.**_

"I hated that guy, I can't believe he already reformed, I was told last time it took a hundred years for him to reform." Nico said.

"We've been over this, we have some _horrible_ luck." Piper said.

 _ **It was definitely Geryon, who had tried to kill Percy two years ago in Texas. Apparently the evil rancher was anxious to break in a new herd. The idea of that guy riding out of the Doors of Death made Percy's sides hurt all over again. His ribs throbbed where the**_ **arai** _ **had unleashed Geryon's dying curse back in the forest. He wanted to march up to three-bodied rancher, smack him in the face, and yell,**_ **Thanks a lot, Tex!**

 _ **Sadly, he couldn't.**_

"I thought that was a great idea, and you absolutely should have done that." Leo said.

"It's too late to change the past now." Percy told him.

 _ **How many other old enemies were in this crowd? Percy began to realize that every battle he'd ever won had only been a temporary victory. No matter how strong or lucky he was, no matter how many monsters he destroyed, Percy would eventually fail. He was only one mortal. He would get too old, too weak, or too slow. He would die.**_

"That's a horribly depressing thought, thank you captain sunshine, mind if we hear from somebody else today." Hermes said.

 _ **And these monsters...they lasted**_ **forever.** _ **They just kept coming back. Maybe it would take them months or years to re-form, maybe even centuries. But they**_ **would** _ **be reborn.**_

"Maybe not, then."

 _ **Seeing them assembled in Tartarus, Percy felt as hopeless as the spirits in the River Cocytus. So what if he was a hero? So what if he did something brave? Evil was always here, regenerating, bubbling under the surface. Percy was no more than a minor annoyance to these immortal beings. They just had to outwait him. Someday, Percy's sons or daughters might have to face them all over again.**_

 **Sons and daughters.**

 _ **The thought jarred him. As quickly as hopelessness had overtaken him, it disappeared. He glanced at Annabeth. She still looked like a misty corpse, but he imagined her true appearance-her gray eyes full of determination, her blond hair pulled back in a bandana, her face weary and streaked with grime, but as beautiful as ever.**_

 _ **Okay, maybe monsters kept coming back forever. But so did demigods. Generation after generation, Camp Half-Blood had endured. And Camp Jupiter. Even separately, the two camps had survived. Now, if the Greeks and Romans could come together, they would be even stronger. There was still hope. He and Annabeth had come this far. The Doors of Death were almost within reach.**_

 **Sons and daughters.** _ **A ridiculous thought. An awesome thought. Right there in the middle of Tartarus, Percy grinned.**_

"Awww, you two are just so adorable, I'm actually going to die." Aphrodite squealed.

Annabeth looked over at Percy, blushing at the implications.

"That was really sweet, Seaweed Brain." she said.

"I just can't believe that that might be a real possibility now." Percy said. "It's crazy to think about."

" _ **What's wrong?" Annabeth whispered.**_

 _ **With his zombie Death Mist disguise, Percy probably looked like he was grimacing in pain.**_

" _ **Nothing," he said. "I was just-"**_

 _ **Somewhere in front of them, a deep voice bellowed: "IAPETUS!"**_

"Can we please not have somebody knowing who Bob really is." Hazel groaned.

"Sadly, we cannot." Thalia reminded her.

"Well, I doubt I'm ready for whatever's coming in the next chapter, but I need to know what's going to happen next, so let's do it." Clarisse said.

* * *

 _ **AN: Just saying, I fully believe in the multiverse theory, and that the gods can exist in more than just our universe. I feel like they mix up and get confused about what universe they're in all the time. I also believe that Hermes keeps up with, and creates, all of the memes since he created the internet. Also, Percy was thinking about their kids, Oh my gods, I love them so much. I'm going to recommend**_ **Dreams by Another Wise Girl xx, which is the sequel to Memories and it's amazing.** _ **See you guys soon.**_


	31. Memory Lane

_**Disclaimer: I don't own anything, Rick Riordan does.**_

 _ **AN: Hey, guys! How are you all today? There's something I've been working on for the past few days that you might possibly enjoy. We'll talk more at the end of the chapter.**_

 _ **Percabeth824:**_ _ **Thank you!**_

 _ **Lintsu13:**_ _ **Thank you so much! You know what's crazy, I saw the notification for your second review while I was sitting down to write this chapter.**_

 _ **KriKri:**_ _ **That's a good idea for PJO, but I want you to know, I'm mostly likely not going to do another HoO book for a while because they're**_ **so** _ **long. I mean I started this story about seven months ago and I'm not even doing the entire book, that was one of the reasons I wanted to do PJO, because they're so much shorter than the HoO books. Holy shit, that's so sweet, thank you! Also, amazing poem. Bye!**_

 _ **DeadlyHuggles:**_ _ **I'm sorry, I don't know what you mean by "sometimes." Percy's a cute papaya at all times. Every of the times. See, I haven't actually read many stories with Octavian in them, because most of the ones I've seen on this site were shipping him with Rachel and that was just a**_ **tiny** _ **bit weird for me.**_

 _ **Death Fury:**_ _ **Thank you!**_

 _ **OceanBlueSeaEyes:**_ _ **Yeah, this part is a bit painful with Bob. I did like hearing more about what the Titans used to do when they were in power.**_

 _ **LoorOfZadaa:**_ _ **Thank you so much! I'll definitely try to do that some more.**_

 _ **Guest:**_ _ **Thank you! Also, I don't what it is, but I find your review really adorable.**_

* * *

"You know, even though it absolutely _sucks_ having to think about _that_ place again, it's been nice having everyone together in one place again." Percy said.

"Speaking of together again, we never actually got the chance to catch up after the war, you, me, and Annabeth." Thalia said.

"Oh yeah, what was it again? We were going to go out and get some cheeseburgers." Annabeth remembered.

"Yeah, we should definitely go and do that once we're done here." Thalia finished looking back at the thrones in front of her, which had more than a few impatient gods waiting for them to stop talking.

"So, who's reading now?" Grover asked.

"Surprisingly, I haven't gotten a chance to read a chapter yet, so I think that I'll go next." Aphrodite said.

 _ **A Titan strode toward them, casually kicking lesser monsters out of his way. He was roughly the same height as Bob, with elaborate Stygian iron armor, a single diamond blazing in the center of his breastplate. His eyes were blue-white, like core samples from a glacier, and just as cold. His hair was the same color, cut military style. A battle helmet shaped like a bear's head was tucked under his arm. From his belt hung a sword the size of a surfboard. Despite his battle scars, the Titan's face was handsome and strangely familiar. Percy was pretty sure he'd never seen the guy before, but his eyes and his smile reminded Percy of someone…**_

 _ **The titan stopped in front of Bob. He clapped him on the shoulder.**_

" _ **Iapetus! Don't tell me you don't recognize your own brother!"**_

" _ **No!" Bob agreed nervously. "I won't tell you that."**_

 _ **The other Titan threw back his head and laughed. "I heard you were thrown into the Lethe. Must've been terrible! We all knew you would heal eventually. It's Koios! Koios!"**_

" _ **Of course," Bob said. "Koios, Titan of…"**_

" _ **The North!" Koios said.**_

" _ **I know!" Bob shouted.**_

 _ **They laughed together and took turns hitting each other in the arm. Apparently miffed by all the jostling, Small Bob crawled onto Bob's head and began making a nest in the Titan's silver hair.**_

"That kitten is seriously adorable." Frank said.

" _ **Poor old Iapetus," said Koios. "They must have laid you low indeed. Look at you! A broom? A servant's uniform? A cat in your hair? Truly, Hades must pay for these insults. Who was that demigod who took your memory? Bah! We must rip him to pieces, you and I, eh?"**_

" _ **Ha-ha." Bob swallowed. "Yes, indeed. Rip him to pieces."**_

 _ **Percy's fingers closed around his pen. He didn't think much of Bob's brother, even without the**_ **rip-him-to-pieces** _ **threat. Compared to Bob's simple way of speaking, Koios sounded like he was reciting Shakespeare. That alone was enough to make Percy irritated. He was ready to uncap Riptide if he had to, but so far Koios didn't seem to notice him. And Bob hadn't betrayed them yet, though he'd had plenty of opportunities.**_

"Did you really think that he would betray you that easily after everything you guys have been through?" Hestia asked Percy.

"Well, why wouldn't he? I lied to him about being his friend and I stole his memories, he had plenty of reason to hate me. The only reason he came and saved us in the first place was because Nico told him that I was his friend." Percy said.

"Look, how many times do we have to tell you, it wasn't your fault. You're not a bad person for dipping Bob in the Lethe, you did what you had to do to make sure that you and your friends were safe. And how can you say that you weren't his friend, you three stayed together and kept each other safe and sane while you were down there, if you weren't friends after something like that, I would be shocked." Jason reminded him.

" _ **Ah, it's good to see you…" Koios drummed his fingers on his bear's-head helmet. "You remember what fun we had in the old days?"**_

" _ **Of course!" Bob chirped. "When we, uh…"**_

" _ **Holding down our father, Ouranos," Koios said.**_

" _ **Yes! We loved wrestling with Dad…"**_

"Oh, no." Aphrodite thought as she continued reading.

" _ **We restrained him."**_

" _ **That's what I meant!"**_

" _ **While Kronos cut him to pieces with his scythe."**_

" _ **Yes, ha-ha." Bob looked mildly ill. "What fun."**_

" _ **You grabbed Father's right foot, as I recall," Koios said. "And Ouranos kicked you in the face as he struggled. How we used to tease you about that!"**_

"He makes it sound like we were all just one big happy family out on a picnic. It was horrible, I was very young in the days after Kronos took over, but I can still remember how bad it really was." Aphrodite said out loud this time, reminding everyone in the room _just_ how old she was.

" _ **Silly me," Bob agreed.**_

" _ **Sadly, our brother Kronos was dissolved by those impudent demigods." Koios heaved a sigh. "Bits and pieces of his essence remain, but nothing you could put together again. I suppose some injuries even Tartarus cannot heal."**_

" _ **Alas!"**_

"I'm just happy that we know for sure that Kronos won't be coming back, it seems that we did a pretty good job." Apollo said.

"You know, speaking of Kronos, we've been hearing stories about him and you guys for months now, I think we deserve the story directly from you guys." Piper said, looking directly at the greek demigods in the room.

"Let's finish this story first and then we'll see what happens after that." Annabeth said.

" _ **But the rest of us have another chance to shine, eh?" He leaned forward conspiratorially. "These giants may**_ **think** _ **they will rule. Let them be our shock troops and destroy the Olympians-all well and good. But once the Earth Mother is awake, she will remember that we are her eldest children. Mark my words. The Titans will yet rule the cosmos."**_

" _ **Hmmm," Bob said. "The giants may not like that."**_

" _ **Spit on what**_ **they** _ **like," Koios said. "They've already passed through the Doors of Death, anyway, back to the mortal world. Polybotes was the last one, not half an hour ago, still grumbling about missing his prey. Apparently some demigods he was after got swallowed by Nyx. Never see**_ **them** _ **again, I wager!"**_

"Man, he must be a terrible gambler then, because guess what, we're still here." Percy said.

 _ **Annabeth gripped Percy's wrist. Through the Death Mist, he couldn't read her expression very well, but he saw the alarm in her eyes. If the giants had already passed through the Doors, then at least they wouldn't be hunting through Tartarus for Percy and Annabeth. Unfortunately, that also meant their friends in the mortal world were in even greater danger. All of the earlier fights with the giants had been in vain. Their enemies would be reborn as strong as ever.**_

"If they had already left the Doors of Death, I think that I can make a pretty good guess about where they were headed." Athena said.

Annabeth looked at her mother and confirmed Athena's theory with a nod of her head.

" _ **Well!" Koios drew his massive sword. The blade radiated a cold deeper than the Hubbard Glacier. "I must be off. Leto should have regenerated by now. I will convince her to fight."**_

" _ **Of course," Bob murmured. "Leto."**_

 _ **Koios laughed. "You've forgotten my daughter, as well? I suppose it's been too long since you've seen her. The peaceful ones like her always take the longest to re-form. This time, though, I'm sure Leto will fight for vengeance. The way Zeus treated her, after she bore him those fine twins? Outrageous!"**_

"Wait, so, if I'm correct on my mythology, that means that Koios was your guys' grandfather?" Thalia asked the sun and moon twins.

"Yep, which would make him your great uncle, I think." Apollo told her.

"I would really rather not think about how I'm related to the Titans." Thalia said.

"I mean, it gets too confusing for _us_ at times, so I don't really blame you." Apollo replied.

 _ **Percy almost grunted out loud.**_

 **The twins.**

 _ **He remembered the name Leto: the mother of Apollo and Artemis. This guy Koios looked vaguely familiar because he had Artemis's cold eyes and Apollo's smile. The Titan was their grandfather, Leto's father. The idea gave Percy a migraine.**_

"Great minds think alike, I guess." Percy said to Thalia.

"I'm sorry, great?" Thalia asked innocently.

" _ **Well! I'll see you in the mortal world!" Koios chest-bumped Bob, almost knocking the cat off his head. "Oh, and our two**_ **other** _ **brothers are guarding this side of the Doors, so you'll see them soon enough!"**_

"Oh, that sounds good, two _more_ Titans that you have to deal with." Hazel said.

" _ **I will?"**_

" _ **Count on it!"**_

"You can count on it! Even better." Hazel said sarcastically.

 _ **Koios lumbered off, almost knocking over Percy and Annabeth as they scrambled out of his way. Before the crowd of monsters could fill the empty space, Percy motioned for Bob to lean in.**_

" _ **You okay, big guy?" Percy whispered.**_

 _ **Bob frowned. "I do not know. In all this"-he gestured around them-"what is the meaning of**_ **okay** _ **?"**_

 **Fair point,** _ **Percy thought.**_

 _ **Annabeth peered toward the Doors of Death, though the crowd of monsters blocked them from view. "Did I hear correctly? Two more Titans guarding our exit? That's not good."**_

 _ **Percy looked at Bob. The Titan's distant expression worried him.**_

" _ **Do you remember Koios?" he asked gently. "All that stuff he was talking about?"**_

 _ **Bob gripped his broom. "When he told it, I remembered. He handed me my past like...like a spear. But I do not know if I should take it. Is it still mine, if I do not want it?"**_

" _ **No," Annabeth said firmly. "Bob, you're different now. You're**_ **better.** _ **"**_

 _ **The kitten jumped off Bob's head. He circled the Titan's feet, bumping his head against the Titan's pants cuffs. Bob didn't seem to notice. Percy wished he could be as certain as Annabeth. He wished he could tell Bob with absolute confidence that he should forget about his past. But Percy understood Bob's confusion. He remembered the day he'd opened his eyes at the Wolf House in California, his memory wiped clean by Hera. If somebody had been waiting for Percy when he first woke up, if they'd convinced Percy that his name was Bob, and he was a friend of the Titans and the giants...would Percy have believed it? Would he have felt betrayed once he found out his true identity?**_

 **This is different,** _ **he told himself.**_ **We're the good guys.**

 _ **But were they? Percy had left Bob in Hades's palace, at the mercy of a new master who hated him. Percy didn't feel like he had much right to tell Bob what to do now-even if their lives depended on it.**_

" _ **I think you can choose, Bob." Percy ventured. "Take the parts of Iapetus's past that you want to keep. Leave the rest. Your future is what matters."**_

" _ **Future…" Bob mused. "That is a mortal concept. I am not meant to change, Percy Friend." He gazed around him at the horde of monsters. "We are the same...forever."**_

" _ **If you were the same," Percy said, "Annabeth and I would be dead already. Maybe we weren't meant to be friends, but we**_ **are.** _ **You've been the best friend we could ask for."**_

 _ **Bob's silver eyes looked darker than usual. He held out his hand, and Small Bob the kitten jumped into it. The Titan rose to his full height.**_

" _ **Let us go, then, friends. Not much farther."**_

 _ **Stomping on Tartarus's heart wasn't nearly as much fun as it sounded. The purplish ground was slippery and constantly pulsing. It looked flat from a distance, but up close it was made of folds and ridges that got harder to navigate the farther they walked. Gnarled lumps of red arteries and blue veins gave Percy some footholds when he had to climb, but the going was slow.**_

 _ **And of course, the monsters were everywhere. Packs of hellhounds prowled the plains, baying and snarling and attacking any monster that dropped its guard.**_ **Arai** _ **wheeled overhead on leathery wings, making ghastly dark silhouettes in the poison clouds. Percy stumbled. His hand touched a red artery, and a tingling sensation went up his arm.**_

" _ **There's water in here," he said. "Actual water."**_

 _ **Bob grunted. "One of the five rivers. His blood."**_

" _ **His blood?" Annabeth stepped away from the nearest clump of veins. "I knew the Underworld rivers all emptied into Tartarus, but-"**_

" _ **Yes," Bob agreed. "They all flow through his heart."**_

"So, that means that the rivers of the Underworld are all just the blood of Tartarus?" Leo asked.

"Oh, man, I just realized that that means I swam in that _thing's_ blood when I took a dip in the Styx." Percy said, disgusted.

 _ **Percy traced his hand across a web of capillaries. Was the water of the Styx flowing beneath his fingers, or maybe the Lethe? If one of those veins popped when he stepped on it… Percy shuddered. He realized he was taking a stroll across the most dangerous circulatory system in the universe.**_

"I would move away, just to be safe." Grover said.

"Trust me, we did the best that we could." Annabeth told him.

" _ **We should hurry," Annabeth said. "If we can't…"**_

 _ **Her voice trailed off.**_

 _ **Ahead of them, jagged streaks of darkness tore through the air-like lightning, except pure black.**_

" _ **The Doors," Bob said. "Must be a large group going through."**_

 _ **Percy's mouth tasted like gorgon's blood. Even if his friends from the**_ **Argo II** _ **managed to find the other side of the Doors of Death, how could they possibly fight the waves of monsters that were coming through, especially if all the giants were already waiting for them?**_

"C'mon have a _little_ faith in us." Jason said, jokingly.

" _ **Do all the monsters go through the House of Hades?" he asked. "How big**_ **is** _ **that place?"**_

 _ **Bob shrugged. "Perhaps they are sent elsewhere when they step through. The House of Hades is in the earth, yes? That is Gaea's realm. She could send her minions wherever she wishes."**_

 _ **Percy's spirits sank. Monsters coming through the Doors of Death to threaten his friends at Epirus-that was bad enough. Now he imagined the ground on the mortal side as one big subway system, depositing giants and other nasties anywhere Gaea wanted them to go-Camp Half-Blood, Camp Jupiter, or in the path of the**_ **Argo II** _ **before it could even reach Epirus.**_

" _ **If Gaea has that much power," Annabeth asked, "couldn't she control where**_ **we** _ **end up?"**_

 _ **Percy really hated that question. Sometimes he wished Annabeth weren't so smart.**_

 _ **Bob scratched his chin. "You are not monsters. It may be different for you."**_

 _ **Great, Percy thought.**_

 _ **He didn't relish the idea of Gaea waiting for them on the other side, ready to teleport them into the middle of a mountain; but at least the Doors were a chance to get out of Tartarus. It wasn't like they had a better option.**_

"He's right, even with risks, that's their only option." Hephaestus said.

 _ **Bob helped them over the top of another ridge. Suddenly the Doors of Death were in plain view-a freestanding rectangle of darkness at the top of the next heart-muscle hill, about a quarter mile away, surrounded by a horde of monsters so thick Percy could've walked on their heads all the way across. The Doors were still too far away to make out much detail, but the Titans flanking either side were familiar enough. The one on the left wore shining golden armor that shimmered with heat.**_

" _ **Hyperion," Percy muttered. "That guy just won't stay dead."**_

"Ok, that guy really needs to accept the fact that people don't need him anymore, I generate enough light, we don't need any of his." Apollo said, a bit moodily.

 _ **The one on the right wore dark-blue armor, with ram's horns curling from the sides of his helmet. Percy had only seen him in dreams before, but it was definitely Krios, the Titan that Jason had killed in the battle for Mount Tam.**_

"Oh good, I was hoping Krios was alive again. I really could have gone my whole life without knowing that Krios was alive again." Jason said, partway groaning.

" _ **Bob's other brothers," Annabeth said. The Death Mist shimmered around her, temporarily turning her face into a grinning skull. "Bob, if you have to fight them, can you?"**_

 _ **Bob hefted his broom, like he was ready for a messy cleaning job.**_

" _ **We must hurry," he said, which Percy noticed wasn't really an answer. "Follow me."**_

"Against Krios, I think Bob could take him, but against Hyperion and Krios at the same time, I don't think that there's much of fight, as much as it pains me to say." Artemis said.

"Let's not think about their extremely low chances of surviving right now, I need a little drink break, let's meet back here in 10-15 minutes." Dionysus said.

* * *

 _ **AN: This chapter was actually a lot longer than I thought it was, so I guess that's good for you guys. So, for this chapter, i'll recommend**_ **Silent Ray of Sunshine by WannaBeARedHead.** _ **I liked the story, it was pretty good.**_

 _ **Before I go on with what I mentioned at the beginning of the chapter, I feel like I should say that I feel a little weird promoting something else of mine, but at the same time, I'm thinking that it's not like I would promote it on somebody else's story.**_

 _ **But anyways, what I've been working on for the past few days, is a Discord server, mostly about Percy Jackson, and a few other things as well. I just wanted to find a quicker/easier way to talk to you guys and let you know what's happening with the story if I take too long to update a chapter. Sadly, real links don't work on here, so these are the best directions I can give you:**_

 _ **If you guys want to join, you're going to have to go to google and type in "discord . gg /Ww8myY9" without the extra spaces and it should lead you to the server.**_


	32. Sacrifices

_**Disclaimer: I don't own anything, Rick Riordan does.**_

 _ **AN: So, I might have more than one chapter today, we'll see, I haven't decided yet, but keep a look out.**_

 _ **Death Fury:**_ _ **Thank you!**_

 _ **Meistar:**_ _ **Describe my life in three words with that review why don't you. Anyways, I do try to add some emotion into it, I'm just not the best at it, so I try to stick to the stuff that I am halfway decent at, sorry. I really do wish I could make it more serious.**_

 _ **Lintsu13:**_ _ **Thank you! I'm sorry, but I can't remember right now, were you the one that was reading House of Hades for the first time through this story, cause if you were, I'm so sorry that I've made you wait this long. By the way, I don't really have a set update schedule, I kind of just do it whenever.**_

 _ **Artyom from Russia:**_ _ **Thank you! Oh my gods, I would absolutely**_ **love it** _ **if you did translated the story, just let me know when you start. Also, I don't think that you can correct reviews, I could be 100% wrong though. I'm still freaking out over this, like 5 days later, just the fact that you want to translate my story, it's freaking amazing.**_

 _ **LoorOfZadaa:**_ _ **Thank you! I've known from the first chapter that I was going to end it with them being in the elevator, so sorry about that. For the second Titan War, I was thinking about doing the Last Olympian for the next story, but I haven't decided yet, so don't tell anyone yet, it'll be our little secret. And, yeah, I was thinking about doing something like that at the end. Thank you again.**_

 _ **KriKri:**_ _ **I loved that it was so long too. Don't worry, there are a few more long chapters coming in the near future. Really, an arrow, it makes**_ **so** _ **much sense now. Hey, don't apologize for that, you're all cute ass papayas and don't you forget it.**_

 _ **Prasad:**_ _ **Thank you! I love that you picked up on that, though. I was lowkey foreshadowing a potential sequel. Shh, don't tell anyone. I know, we're so close now, there's only like 5 or 6 more chapters left in the book. I can't wait, it's going to be so fun to right those reactions. I hope you have a good day too.**_

 _ **CloudfireXxxx:**_ _ **I fully understand where you're coming from, the first time I read through House of Hades, I barely paid attention to what was happening to everyone other than Percy and Annabeth.**_

* * *

"So, I remember hearing that you two have been going on quests together since you were twelve." Piper said to Percy and Annabeth as they were walking back into the throne room.

"I was there too. Don't forget about me." Grover said, indignantly.

"Really? Nobody mentioned that you were there."

"Of course they didn't," Grover muttered, sure that she had been talking to the other Aphrodite kids. "If it wasn't for me, these two would have sat there and argued over every little thing and not gotten anything done. You two were _terrible_ back then." he said loud enough for them to hear.

"Anyways, yeah, we've been on a lot of quests together, I mean there was the underworld, the sea of monsters, that whole thing with Atlas, the Labyrinth… Just to name a few." Annabeth said. "We'll have to tell you about them sometime."

"So, who's left? Who hasn't read yet?" Zeus boomed after everyone had sat down.

"Okay, first of all, ow. Second of all, you don't need to be that loud, we're sitting right here." Percy said.

"I am the King, I will do whatever I want." Zeus replied in a louder voice than before.

"Actually, you know, what _you_ haven't read yet, I would've thought that you would be one of the first people to read since you're, you know, King of the gods and all." Nico smirked.

Seeing no other way out, Zeus picked up the book and began reading.

 _ **So far, their Death Mist camouflage plan seed to be working. So, naturally, Percy expected a massive last minute fail. Fifty feet from the Doors of Death, he and Annabeth froze.**_

" _ **Oh, gods," Annabeth murmured. "They're the**_ **same.** _ **"**_

 _ **Percy knew what she meant. Framed in Stygian iron, the magical portal was a set of elevator doors-two panels of silver and black etched with art deco designs. Except for the fact that the colors were inverted, they looked exactly like the elevators in the Empire State Building, the entrance to Olympus. Seeing them, Percy felt so homesick, he couldn't breathe. He didn't just miss Mount Olympus. He missed everything he'd left behind: New York City, Camp Half-Blood, his mom and stepdad. His eyes stung. He didn't trust himself to talk. The Doors of Death seemed like a personal insult, designed to remind him of everything he couldn't have.**_

"As soon as we get out of here, we're going to visit my mom and Paul." Percy announced.

"Ooh, can I come?" Poseidon said, excitedly raising his hand like a child.

"Yes, you can come too, dad." Percy sighed.

 _ **As he got over his initial shock, he noticed other details: the frost spreading from the base of the Doors, the purplish glow in the air around them, and the chains that held them fast. Cords of black iron ran down either side of the frame, like rigging lines on a suspension bridge. They were tethered to hooks embedded in the fleshy ground. The two Titans, Krios and Hyperion, stood guard at the anchor points. As Percy watched, the entire frame shuddered. Black lightning flashed into the sky. The chains shook, and the Titans planted their feet on the hooks to keep them secure. The Doors slid open, revealing the gilded interior of an elevator car.**_

 _ **Percy tensed, ready to charge forward, but Bob planted a hand on his shoulder.**_

"Not a good idea, Percy. You need to figure out how you're going to get past the Titans and into the elevator, and also how you're going to release the Doors." Frank said, immediately snapping back into Praetor Zhang mode.

" _ **Wait," he cautioned.**_

 _ **Hyperion yelled to the surrounding crowd: "Group A-22! Hurry up, you sluggards!"**_

 _ **A dozen Cyclopes rushed forward, waving little red tickets and shouting excitedly. They shouldn't have been able to fit inside those human-sized doors, but as the Cyclopes got close, their bodies distorted and shrank, the Doors of Death sucking them inside. The Titan Krios jabbed his thumb against the up button on the elevator's right side. The Doors slid closed. The frame shuddered again. Dark lightning faded.**_

" _ **You must understand how it works," Bob muttered. He addressed the kitten in his palm, maybe so the other monsters wouldn't wonder who he was talking to. "Each time the Doors open, they try to teleport to a new location. Thanatos made them this way, so only he could find them. But now they are chained. The Doors cannot relocate."**_

" _ **Then we cut the chains," Annabeth whispered.**_

 _ **Percy looked at the blazing form of Hyperion. The last time he'd fought the Titan, it had taken every ounce of his strength. Even then Percy had almost died. Now there were**_ **two** _ **Titans, with several thousand monsters for backup.**_

"The odds do not look good right now, but you got this." Jason encouraged.

" _ **Our camouflage," he said. "Will it disappear if we do something aggressive, like cutting the chains?"**_

" _ **I do not know," Bob told his kitten.**_

" _ **Mrow," said Small Bob.**_

" _ **Bob, you'll have to distract them," Annabeth said. "Percy and I will sneak around the two Titans and cut the chains from behind."**_

" _ **Yes, fine," Bob said. "But that is only one problem. Once you are inside the Doors, someone must stay outside to push the button and defend it."**_

 _ **Percy tried to swallow. "Uh….defend the button?"**_

 _ **Bob nodded, scratching his kitten under the chin. "Someone must keep pressing the UP button for twelve minutes, or the journey will not finish."**_

"Umm, not finish? What does that even mean?" Leo asked.

"You know, we didn't exactly have much time to get a full explanation." Percy said.

 _ **Percy glanced at the Doors. Sure enough, Krios still had his thumb jammed on the UP button. Twelve minutes… Somehow, they would have to get the Titans away from those doors. Then Bob, Percy, or Annabeth would have to keep that button pushed for twelve long minutes, in the middle of an army of monsters in the heart of Tartarus, while the other two rode to the mortal world. It was impossible.**_

"Remember when you thought defeating Kronos was impossible, look at where you are now." Hestia said.

" _ **Why twelve minutes?" Percy asked.**_

" _ **I do not know," Bob said. "Why twelve Olympians, or twelve Titans?"**_

" _ **Fair enough," Percy said, though he had a bitter taste in his mouth.**_

" _ **What do you mean the journey won't finish?" Annabeth asked. "What happens to the passengers?"**_

 _ **Bob didn't answer. Judging from his pained expression Percy decided he didn't want to be in that elevator if the car stalled between Tartarus and the mortal world.**_

" _ **If we**_ **do** _ **push the button for twelve minutes," Percy said, "and the chains are cut-"**_

" _ **The Doors should reset," Bob said. "That is what they are supposed to do. They will disappear from Tartarus. They will appear somewhere else, where Gaea cannot use them."**_

" _ **Thanatos can reclaim them," Annabeth said. "Death goes back to normal, and the monsters lose their shortcut to the mortal world."**_

"I'm thinking that we need to cut those chains, asap." Grover said.

 _ **Percy exhaled. "Easy-peasy. Except for...well, everything."**_

 _ **Small Bob purred.**_

" _ **I will push the button," Bob volunteered.**_

 _ **A mix of feelings churned in Percy's gut-grief, sadness, gratitude, and guilt thickening into emotional cement.**_

" _ **Bob, we can't ask you to do that. You want to go through the Doors too. You want to see the sky again, and the stars, and-"**_

" _ **I would like that," Bob agreed. "But someone must push the button. And once the chains are cut….my brethren will fight to stop your passage. They will not want the Doors to disappear."**_

 _ **Percy gazed at the endless horde of monsters. Even if he let Bob make this sacrifice, how could one Titan defend himself against so many for twelve minutes, all while keeping his finger on a button?**_

 _ **The cement settled in Percy's stomach. He had always suspected how this would end. He would have to stay behind. While Bob fended off the army, Percy would hold the elevator button and make sure Annabeth got to safety.**_

"I'm sorry, what?!"

"You are not going to be the one that stays behind, Kelp Head, you got that." Thalia said glaring into the depths of his soul.

"Got it." Percy shuddered.

 _ **Somehow, he had to convince her to go without him. As long as she was safe and the Doors disappeared, he could die knowing he'd done something right.**_

" _ **Percy…?" Annabeth stared at him, a suspicious edge to her voice.**_

 _ **She was too smart. If he met her eyes, she would see exactly what he was thinking.**_

" _ **First things first," he said. "Let's cut those chains."**_

"There was no way, that I would have let you stay behind without me." Annabeth told Percy. "We would have stayed or we would have left, but either way we would have stayed together, no matter what."

"Yeah, none of us are going to let you sacrifice yourself for us, dumbass." Clarisse said.

* * *

 _ **AN: Hey, another relatively long chapter, nice. So,**_ **if** _ **I do upload another chapter today, it'll probably be late at night, just so you guys know. I think that I'm gonna recommend**_ **Of Corporate Scandals by miarella, I haven't actually finished reading this one yet, but it's been great so far.** _ **I'll see you guys soon.**_


	33. The Pit

_**Disclaimer: I don't own anything, Rick Riordan does.**_

 _ **AN: Winter break has started and I. Am. Finishing. This. Story. Before. The. Year. Ends. It's TIME. So, since we're at the final part of the story, there's going to be limited reactions from people, just like I did with the**_ **Arai.** _ **At the end, I'll have everybody talk about the book and everything they went through. It's been 7 months in the making, but here we go:**_

 _ **DeadlyHuggles:**_ _ **His description is SO GOOD. I only wish Gaea's had been anywhere near as good as his. Don't worry about the end, because something has to end first before something else can begin : )**_

 _ **Allen r:**_ _ **Thank you!**_

 _ **Lintsu13:**_ _ **Thank you! And that's awesome that you've been reading for that long and keeping up with my inconsistently updating self.**_

 _ **Prasad:**_ _ **I guess you'll just have to wait and see for the future stories. I know there are so many of the gods read fanfics, but nobody ever finishes them, I'm surprised that I actually made it to the end. I'm sorry about the cliffhanger, but now there's no more cliffhangers left, it's just the end of the book. Sorry, that i couldn't get that other chapter done last week.**_

 _ **OceanBlueSeaEyes:**_ _ **i know, right? She's been through too much already.**_

 _ **Meistar:**_ _ **Thank you! I actually haven't checked recently, if Corporate Scandals has been updated, I'll have to check it out, you just reminded me.**_

 _ **Death Fury:**_ _ **Thank you! And that actually makes a lot of sense. It makes more sense than Loyalty anyways. It would've been really cool to see that be his fatal flaw instead.**_

 _ **Valeria888:**_ _ **To be honest, when I started, I wasn't sure if I was going to finish either, but surprisingly, we're here now. I'm so happy that you guys love it.**_

 _ **Artyom from Russia:**_ _ **That's awesome!**_

* * *

"Athena, you haven't read yet, and I _know_ that I speak for all of us here when I say that we want to see those chains getting cut, so start reading, daughter." Zeus said.

" _ **Iapetus!" Hyperion bellowed. "Well, well. I thought you were hiding under a cleaning bucket somewhere."**_

"Rude." Hestia huffed.

 _ **Bob lumbered forward, scowling. "I was not hiding."**_

 _ **Percy crept toward the right side of the Doors. Annabeth sneaked toward the left. The Titans gave no sign of noticing them, but Percy took no chances. He kept Riptide in pen form. He crouched low, stepping as quietly as possible. The lesser monsters kept a respectful distance from the Titans, so there was enough empty space to maneuver around the Doors; but Percy was keenly aware of the snarling mob at his back. Annabeth had decided to take the side Hyperion was guarding, on the theory that Hyperion was more likely to sense Percy. After all, Percy was the last one to have killed him in the mortal world. That was fine with Percy. After being in Tartarus for so long, he could barely look at Hyperion's burning golden armor without getting spots in his eyes.**_

"That's nothing, you want to see bright, I'll show you bright-" Apollo said.

"Stop that! We don't need to be blinded right now, you big ball of gas." Artemis said, stopping him from destroying the demigod's retinas.

 _ **On Percy's side of the Doors, Krios stood dark and silent, his ram's-headed helmet covering his face. He kept one foot planted on the chain's anchor and his thumb on the UP button. Bob faced his brethren. He planted his spear and tried to look as fierce as possible with a kitten on his shoulder.**_

" _ **Hyperion and Krios. I remember you both."**_

" _ **Do you, Iapetus?" The golden Titan laughed, glancing at Krios to share the joke. "Well, that's good to know! I heard Percy Jackson turned you into a brainwashed scullery maid. What did he rename you...Betty?"**_

" _ **Bob," snarled Bob.**_

" _ **Well, it's about time you showed up,**_ **Bob.** _ **Krios and I have been stuck here for**_ **weeks-** _ **"**_

" _ **Hours," Krios corrected, his voice a deep rumble inside his helmet.**_

" _ **Whatever!" Hyperion said. "It's boring work, guarding these doors, shuffling monsters through at Gaea's orders. Krios, what's our next group, anyway?"**_

" _ **Double Red," said Krios.**_

 _ **Hyperion sighed. The flames glowed hotter across his shoulders.**_

" _ **Double Red. Why do we go from A-22 to Double Red? What kind of system is that?" He glared at Bob. "This is no job for me-the Lord of Light! Titan of the East! Master of Dawn! Why am I forced to wait in the darkness while the**_ **giants** _ **go into battle and get all the glory? Now,**_ **Krios** _ **I can understand-"**_

"You know, I can definitely see where Apollo got it from." Percy said.

"Got what?" Apollo asked.

"That's exactly what I was thinking, that's totally where he gets it from." Thalia agreed, ignoring Apollo entirely.

"Got what?" Apollo repeated, getting annoyed that people were ignoring him.

"It all makes so much sense now." Percy said.

Everybody was forced to pay attention to Apollo once he turned up the brightness in the room.

"Got. What?" Apollo asked through gritted teeth.

"Your arrogance and flare for theatrics." Artemis answered for them.

"Hey, I can't argue about the flare for theatrics, but it's not arrogance if it's the truth." Apollo replied indignantly.

"Can we get back to reading now, please?" Athena asked.

" _ **I get all the worst assignments," Krios muttered, his thumb still on the button.**_

" _ **But**_ **me** _ **?" Hyperion said. "Ridiculous! This should be your job, Iapetus. Here, take my place for a while."**_

 _ **Bob stared at the Doors, but his gaze was distant-lost in the past.**_

" _ **The four of us held down our father, Ouranos," he remembered. "Koios, and me, and the two of you. Kronos promised us mastery of the four corners of the earth for helping with the murder."**_

" _ **Indeed," Hyperion said. "And I was happy to do it! I would've wielded the scythe myself if I'd had the chance! But you,**_ **Bob...** _ **you were always conflicted about that killing, weren't you? The**_ **soft** _ **Titan of the West, soft as the sunset! Why our parents named you the**_ **Piercer,** _ **I will never know. More like the**_ **Whimper.** _ **"**_

 _ **Percy reached the anchor hook. He uncapped his pen and Riptide grew to full length. Krios didn't react. His attention was firmly fixed on Bob, who had just leveled the point of his spear at Hyperion's chest.**_

" _ **I can still pierce," Bob said, his voice low and even. "You brag too much, Hyperion. You are bright and fiery, but Percy Jackson defeated you anyway. I hear you became a nice tree in Central Park."**_

 _ **Hyperion's eyes smoldered. "Careful, brother."**_

" _ **At least a janitor's work is honest," Bob said. "I clean up after others. I leave the palace better than I found it. But you...you do not care what messes you make. You followed Kronos blindly. Now you take orders from Gaea."**_

" _ **She is our**_ **mother** _ **!" Hyperion bellowed.**_

"He's right. She is a mother. A motherfu-" Leo said.

"Leo!" Piper glared at him, trying not to smile.

" _ **She did not wake for**_ **our** _ **war on Olympus," Bob recalled. "She favors her second brood, the giants."**_

 _ **Krios grunted. "That's true enough. The children of the pit."**_

" _ **Both of you hold your tongues!" Hyperion's voice was tinged with fear. "You never know when he is listening."**_

 _ **The elevator dinged. All three Titans jumped. Had it been twelve minutes? Percy had track of time. Krios took his finger off the button and called out, "Double Red! Where is Double Red?"**_

 _ **Hordes of monsters stirred and jostled one another, but none of them came forward.**_

 _ **Krios heaved a sigh. "I**_ **told** _ **them to hang on to their tickets. Double Red! You'll lose your place in the queue!"**_

 _ **Annabeth was in position, right behind Hyperion. She raised her drakon-bone sword over the base of the chains. In the fiery light of the Titan's armor, her Death Mist disguise made her look like a burning ghoul. She held up three fingers, ready to count down. They had to cut the chains before the next group tried to take the elevator, but they also had to make sure the Titans were as distracted as possible.**_

 _ **Hyperion muttered a curse. "Just**_ **wonderful.** _ **This will completely mess up our schedule." He sneered at Bob. "Make your choice, brother. Fight us or help us. I don't have time for your lectures."**_

 _ **Bob glanced at Annabeth and Percy. Percy thought he might start a fight, but instead he raised the point of his spear. "Very well. I will take guard duty. Which of you wants a break first?"**_

" _ **Me, of course," Hyperion said.**_

" _ **Me!" Krios snapped. "I've been holding that button so long my thumb is going to fall off."**_

" _ **I've been standing here longer," Hyperion grumbled. "You two guard the Doors while**_ **I** _ **go up to the mortal world. I have some Greek heroes to wreak vengeance upon!"**_

" _ **Oh, no!" Krios complained. "That Roman boy is on his way to Epirus-the one who killed me on Mount Othrys. Got lucky, he did. Now it's my turn."**_

"I'm sorry, lucky?" Jason said, raising his eyebrows.

"Calm down, Sparky, you know he's just angry that he got killed in the first place." Piper told him.

" _ **Bah!" Hyperion drew his sword. "I'll gut you first, Ram-head!"**_

 _ **Krios raised his own blade. "You can try, but I won't be stuck in this stinking pit any longer!"**_

 _ **Annabeth caught Percy's eyes. She mouthed:**_ **One, two-**

 _ **Before he could strike the chains, a high-pitched whine pierced his ears, like the sound of an incoming rocket. Percy just had time to think:**_ **Uh-oh.** _ **Then an explosion rocked the hillside. A wave of heat knocked Percy backward. Dark shrapnel ripped through Krios and Hyperion, shredding them as easily as wood in a chipper.**_

 **STINKING PIT.** _ **A hollow voice rolled across the plains, shaking the warm fleshy ground. Bob staggered to his feet. Somehow the explosion hadn't touched him. He swept his spear in front of him, trying to locate the source of the voice. Small Bob the kitten crawled into his coveralls.**_

 _ **Annabeth had landed about twenty feet from the Doors. When she stood, Percy was so relieved she was alive it took him a moment to realize she looked like herself. The Death Mist had evaporated. He looked at his own hands. His disguise was gone too.**_

 **TITANS,** _ **said the voice disdainfully.**_ **LESSER BEINGS. IMPERFECT AND WEAK.**

 _ **In front of the Doors of Death, the air darkened and solidified. The being who appeared was so massive, radiating such pure malevolence, that Percy wanted to crawl away and hide. Instead, he forced his eyes to trace the god's form, starting with his black iron boots, each one as large as a coffin. His legs were covered in dark greaves; his flesh all thick purple muscle, like the ground. His armored skirt was made from thousands of blackened, twisted bones, woven together like chain links and clasped in place by a belt of interlocking monstrous arms.**_

 _ **On the surface of the warrior's breastplate, murky faces appeared and submerged-giants, Cyclopes, gorgons, and drakons-all pressing against the armor as if trying to get out. The warrior's arms were bare-muscular, purple, and glistening-his hands as large as crane scoops.**_

 _ **Worst of all his head: a helmet of twisted rock and metal with no particular shape-just jagged with spikes and pulsing patches of magma. His entire face was a whirlpool-an inward spiral of darkness. As Percy watched, the last particles of Titan essence from Hyperion and Krios were vacuumed into the warrior's maw.**_

 _ **Somehow Percy found his voice. "Tartarus."**_

"Oh no." Somebody squeaked.

 _ **The warrior made a sound like a mountain cracking in half: a roar or a laugh, Percy couldn't be sure.**_

 **This form is only a small manifestation of my power,** _ **said the god.**_ **But it is enough to deal with you. I do not interfere lightly, little demigod. It is beneath me to deal with gnats such as yourself.**

" _ **Uh…" Percy's legs threatened to collapse under him. "Don't...you know….go to any trouble."**_

 **You have proven surprisingly resilient,** _ **Tartarus said.**_ **You have come too far. I can no longer stand by and watch your progress.**

 _ **Tartarus spread his arms. Throughout the valley, thousands of monsters wailed and roared, clashing their weapons and bellowing in triumph. The Doors of Death shuddered in their chains.**_

 **Be honored, little demigods,** _ **said the god of the pit.**_ **Even the Olympians were never worthy of my personal attention. But you will be destroyed by Tartarus himself!**

"Not good, that's really not good." Grover said.

Everybody was too stunned by the fact that Tartarus himself had shown up to properly say anything else.

* * *

 _ **AN: It makes me sad, because if a physical form for Tartarus was only a small amount of his power, then he's literally impossible to beat for the demigods, so then, why was Gaea so easy to beat. It took half a chapter just to describe Tartarus, but Gaea was woken up and killed in a single chapter. This is mostly the reason that I don't really acknowledge Blood of Olympus. House of Hades was a great way to end the series. For me, at least. Anyways, I'm going to recommend this amazing story I read today called**_ **why don't we rewrite the stars (changing the world to be ours) by TheWritingManiac, it was long and fucking amazing, and I just really loved it, okay?** _ **Ok, I'll see you guys real soon.**_


	34. I Am Bob

_**Disclaimer: I don't own anything, Rick Riordan does.**_

 _ **AN: Here's more, because like I said, no more cliffhangers.**_

* * *

"Keep reading, right now, Athena." Zeus commanded.

 _ **Getting killed by Tartarus didn't seem like much of an honor. As Annabeth stared up at his dark whirlpool face, she decided she'd rather die in some less memorable way-maybe falling down the stairs, or going peacefully in her sleep at age eighty, after a nice quiet life with Percy. Yes, that sounded good.**_

"That does sound really nice, Wise Girl." Percy told Annabeth.

 _ **It wasn't the first time Annabeth had faced an enemy she couldn't defeat by force. Normally, this would've been her cue to stall for time with some clever Athena-like chitchat. Except her voice wouldn't work. She couldn't even close her mouth. For all she knew, she was drooling as badly as Percy did when he sleeps.**_

 _ **She was dimly aware of the army of monsters swirling around her, but after their initial roar of triumph, the horde had fallen silent. Annabeth and Percy should have been ripped to pieces by now. Instead, the monsters kept their distance, waiting for Tartarus to act. The god of the pit flexed his fingers, examining his own polished black talons. He had no expression, but he straightened his shoulders as if he were pleased.**_

 **It is good to have form,** _ **he intoned.**_ **With these hands, I can eviscerate you.**

 _ **His voice sounded like a backward recording-as if the words were being sucked into the vortex of his face rather than projected. In fact,**_ **everything** _ **seemed to be drawn toward the face of this god-the dim light, the poisonous clouds, the essence of the monsters, even Annabeth's own fragile life force. She looked around and realized that every object on this vast plain had grown a vaporous comet's tail-all pointing toward Tartarus.**_

 _ **Annabeth knew she should say something, but her instincts told her to hide, to avoid doing anything that would draw the god's attention. Besides what could she say?**_ **You won't get away with this!**

 _ **That wasn't true. She and Percy had only survived this long because Tartarus was savoring his new form. He wanted the pleasure of physically ripping them to pieces. If Tartarus wished, Annabeth had no doubt he could devour her existence with a single thought, as easily as he'd vaporized Hyperion and Krios. Would there be any rebirth from that? Annabeth didn't want to find out.**_

 _ **Next to her, Percy did something she'd never seen him do. He dropped his sword. It just fell out of his hand and hit the ground with a thud. Death Mist no longer shrouded his face, but he still had the complexion of a corpse. Tartarus hissed again-possibly laughing.**_

Everyone was shocked that Percy had dropped Riptide, in all the time that they'd known him, he'd never voluntarily given up his trusty sword.

 **Your fear smells wonderful,** _ **said the god.**_ **I see the appeal of having a physical body with so many senses. Perhaps my beloved Gaea is right, wishing to wake from her slumber.**

 _ **He stretched out his massive purple hand and might have plucked up Percy like a weed, but Bob interrupted.**_

" _ **Begone!" The Titan leveled his spear at the god. "You have no right to meddle!"**_

 **Meddle?** _ **Tartarus turned.**_ **I am the lord of** _ **all**_ **creatures of the darkness, puny Iapetus. I can do as I please.**

 _ **His black cyclone face spun faster. The howling sound was so horrible, Annabeth fell to her knees and clutched her ears. Bob stumbled, the wispy comet tail of his life force growing longer as it was sucked toward the face of the god. Bob roared in defiance. He charged and thrust his spear at Tartarus's chest. Before it could connect, Tartarus swatted Bob aside like he was a pesky insect. The Titan went sprawling.**_

 **Why do you not disintegrate?** _ **Tartarus mused.**_ **You are nothing. You are even weaker than Krios and Hyperion.**

" _ **I am Bob," said Bob.**_

 _ **Tartarus hissed.**_ **What is that? What is Bob?**

" _ **I choose to be more than Iapetus," said the Titan. "You do not control me. I am not like my brothers."**_

 _ **The collar of his coveralls bulged. Small Bob leaped out. The kitten landed on the ground in front of his master, then arched his back and hissed at the lord of the abyss. As Annabeth watched, Small Bob began to grow, his form flickering until the little kitten had become a full-sized, translucent skeletal saber-toothed tiger.**_

" _ **Also," Bob announced, "I have a good cat."**_

 _ **No-Longer-Small Bob sprang at Tartarus, sinking his claws into Tartarus's thigh. The tiger scrambled up his leg, straight under the god's chain-link skirt. Tartarus stomped and howled, apparently no longer enamored with having a physical form. Meanwhile, Bob thrust his spear into the god's side, right below his breastplate.**_

 _ **Tartarus roared. He swatted at Bob, but the Titan backed out of reach. Bob thrust out his fingers. His spear yanked itself free of the god's flesh and flew back to Bob's hand, which made Annabeth gulp in amazement. She'd never imagined a broom could have so many useful features. Small Bob dropped out of Tartarus's skirt. He ran to his master's side, his saber-toothed fangs dripping with golden ichor.**_

 **You will die first, Iapetus,** _ **Tartarus decided.**_ **Afterward, I will add your soul to my armor, where it will slowly dissolve over and over, in eternal agony.**

 _ **Tartarus pounded his fist against his breastplate. Milky faces swirled in the metal, silently screaming to get out. Bob turned toward Percy and Annabeth. The Titan grinned, which probably would not have been Annabeth's reaction to a threat of eternal agony.**_

" _ **Take the Doors," Bob said. "I will deal with Tartarus."**_

 _ **Tartarus threw back his head and bellowed-creating a vacuum so strong that the nearest flying demons were pulled into his vortex face and shredded.**_

 _ **Deal**_ **with me?** _ **the god mocked.**_ **You are only a Titan, a** _ **lesser**_ **child of Gaea! I will make you suffer for your arrogance. And as for your tiny mortal friends…**

 _ **Tartarus swept his hand toward the monster army, beckoning them forward.**_

 **DESTROY THEM!**

"That's extremely terrifying." Grover said.

Everyone else agreed, looking just as scared.

* * *

 _ **AN: Hey, guess what's happening, not only is the story ending before the end of the year, I'm going to try and finish it by the end of today. Happy Holidays and I'll see you guys real soon.**_


	35. A New Fate

_**Disclaimer: I don't own anything, Rick Riordan does.**_

 _ **AN: Here's some more for you guys, Happy Holidays.**_

* * *

Athena continued reading quickly worried for her daughter having to fight the god of the pit.

 **DESTROY THEM.**

 _ **Annabeth had heard those words often enough that they shocked her out of her paralysis. She raised her sword and yelled, "Percy!"**_

 _ **He snatched up Riptide. Annabeth dove for the chains holding the Doors of Death. Her drakon-bone blade cut through the left-side moorings in a single swipe. Meanwhile, Percy drove back the first wave of monsters. He stabbed an**_ **arai** _ **and yelped, "Gah! Stupid curses!"**_

 _ **Then he scythed down a half dozen telkhines. Annabeth lunged behind him and sliced through the chains on the other side. The Doors shuddered, then opened with a pleasant**_ **Ding!**

 _ **Bob and his saber-toothed sidekick continued to weave around Tartarus's legs, attacking, and dodging to stay out of his clutches. They didn't seem to be doing much damage, but Tartarus lurched around, obviously not used to fighting in a humanoid body. He swiped and missed, swiped and missed. More monsters surged toward the Doors. A spear flew past Annabeth's head. She turned and stabbed an**_ **empousa** _ **through the gut, then dove for the Doors as they started to close.**_

 _ **She kept them open with her foot as she fought. At least with her back to the elevator car, she didn't have to worry about attacks from behind.**_

" _ **Percy, get over here!" she yelled.**_

 _ **He joined her in the doorway, his face dripping with sweat, and blood from several cuts.**_

" _ **You okay?" she asked.**_

 _ **He nodded. "Got some kind of**_ **pain** _ **curse from that**_ **arai** _ **." He hacked a gryphon out of the air. "Hurts, but it won't kill me. Get in the elevator. I'll hold the button."**_

"No, you won't, we went over this, we're not going to let you sacrifice yourself." Frank told Percy.

"It was the only way." Percy said weakly.

"If you ever say or try anything like that again, we will beat you up, and when I say _we,_ I mean _all of us._ But, that's not all, after we're done with that we will tell your mother about what you were planning. So, don't you dare try." Clarisse threatened.

"Got it." Percy squeaked, looking and feeling legitimately scared.

" _ **Yeah, right!" She smacked a carnivorous horse in the snout with the butt of her sword and sent the monster stampeding through the crowd. "You promised, Seaweed Brain. We would**_ **not** _ **get separated! Ever again!"**_

" _ **You're impossible!"**_

" _ **Love you too!"**_

 _ **An entire phalanx of Cyclopes charged forward, knocking smaller monsters out of the way. Annabeth figured she was about to die. "It had to be Cyclopes," she grumbled.**_

 _ **Percy gave a battle cry. At the Cyclopes' feet, a red vein in the ground burst open, spraying the monsters with liquid fire from the Phlegethon. The fire-water might have healed mortals, but it didn't do the Cyclopes any favors. They combusted in a tidal wave of heat. The burst vein sealed itself, but nothing remained of the monsters except a row of scorch marks.**_

" _ **Annabeth, you**_ **have** _ **to go!" Percy said. "We can't both stay!"**_

" _ **No!" she cried. "Duck!"**_

 _ **He didn't ask why. He crouched, and Annabeth vaulted over him, bringing her sword down on the head of a heavily tattooed ogre. She and Percy stood shoulder to shoulder in the doorway, waiting for the next wave. The exploding vein had given the monsters pause, but it wouldn't be long before they remembered:**_ **Hey, wait, there's seventy-five gazillion of us, and only two of them.**

" _ **Well, then," Percy said, "you have a better idea?"**_

 _ **Annabeth wished she did. The Doors of Death stood right behind them-their exit from this nightmarish world. But they couldn't use the Doors without someone manning the controls for twelve long minutes. If they stepped inside and let the Doors close without someone holding the button, Annabeth didn't think the results would be healthy. And if they stepped away from the Doors for any reason, she imagined the elevator would close and disappear without them.**_

 _ **The situation was so pathetically sad, it was almost funny. The crowd of monsters inched forward, snarling and gathering their courage. Meanwhile, Bob's attacks were getting slower. Tartarus was learning to control his new body. Saber-toothed Small Bob lunged at the god, but Tartarus smacked the cat sideways. Bob charged, bellowing with rage, but Tartarus grabbed his spear and yanked it out of his hands. He kicked bob downhill, knocking over a row of telkhines like sea mammal bowling pins.**_

 **YIELD!** _ **Tartarus thundered.**_

" _ **I will not," Bob said. "You are not my master."**_

 **Die in defiance, then,** _ **said the god of the pit.**_ **You Titans are nothing to me. My children the giants were always better, stronger, and more vicious. They will make the upper world as dark as my realm!**

 _ **Tartarus snapped the spear in half. Bob wailed in agony. Saber-toothed Small Bob leaped to his aid, snarling at Tartarus and baring his fangs. The Titan struggled to rise, but Annabeth knew it was over. Even the monsters turned to watch, as if sensing that their master Tartarus was about to take the spotlight. The death of a Titan was worth seeing.**_

 _ **Percy gripped Annabeth's hand. "Stay here. I've got to help him."**_

" _ **Percy, you can't," she croaked. "Tartarus**_ **can't** _ **be fought. Not by us."**_

 _ **She knew she was right. Tartarus was in a class by himself. He was more powerful than the gods or Titans. Demigods were nothing to him. If Percy charged to help Bob, he would get squashed like an ant. But Annabeth also knew that Percy wouldn't listen. He couldn't leave Bob to die alone. That just wasn't him-and that was one of the many reasons she loved him, even if he was an Olympian-sized pain in the**_ **podex.**

" _ **We'll go together," Annabeth decided, knowing this would be their final battle. If they stepped away from the Doors, they would never leave Tartarus. At least they would die fighting side by side. She was about to say:**_ **Now.**

Many of them had tears in their eyes, including Percy and Annabeth. Aphrodite was outright crying

"They're just _so_ romantic." Aphrodite ugly (but not actually ugly) sobbed.

 _ **A ripple of alarm passed through the army. In the distance, Annabeth heard shrieks, screams, and a persistent**_ **boom, boom, boom** _ **that was too fast to be the heartbeat in the ground-more like something large and heavy, running at full speed. As Earthborn spun into the air as if he'd been tossed. A plume of bright-green gas billowed across the top of the monstrous horde like the spray from a poison riot hose. Everything in its path dissolved. Across the swath of sizzling, newly empty ground, Annabeth saw the cause of the commotion. She started to grin.**_

 _ **The Maeonian drakon spread its frilled collar and hissed, its poison breath filling the battlefield with the smell of pine and ginger. It shifted its hundred-foot-long body, flicking its dappled green tail and wiping out a battalion of ogres. Riding on its back was a red-skinned giant with flowers in his rust-colored braids, a jerkin of green leather, and a drakon-rib lance in his hand.**_

" _ **Damasen!" Annabeth cried.**_

 _ **The giant inclined his head. "Annabeth Chase, I took your advice. I chose myself a new fate."**_

"Oh my gods, YES! I love Damasen and Bob and Not-So-Small Bob, so much!" Hades exploded, clearly much more invested than anyone realized.

Poseidon and Athena looked a little relieved but still just as worried as before.

"I _knew_ he would come around, eventually." Hazel said.

* * *

 _ **AN: So, Damasen is here now, time for the final battle. Yay! See you guys real soon.**_


	36. The Sun And The Stars

_**Disclaimer: I don't own anything, Rick Riordan does.**_

 _ **AN: The next chapter, which is the**_ **last** _ **chapter by the way, is going to take a little while longer to write, but, I'll try and get it done by tonight at the latest, but it**_ **WILL** _ **be done before midnight tonight. Today's actually going to be the last day. It's fucking**_ **wild.**

* * *

Annabeth quietly got up, walked over to her mother, and took the book from her hands, and decided to finish reading the book.

 **WHAT IS THIS?** _ **the god of the pit hissed.**_ **Why have you come, my disgraced son?**

 _ **Damasen glanced at Annabeth, a clear message in his eyes:**_ **Go. Now.**

 _ **He turned toward Tartarus. The Maeonian drakon stamped its feet and snarled.**_

" _ **Father, you wished for a more worthy opponent?" Damasen asked calmly. "I am one of the giants you are so proud of. You wished me to be more warlike? Perhaps I will start by destroying you!"**_

 _ **Damasen leveled his lance and charged. The monstrous army swarmed him, but the Maeonian drakon flattened everything in its path, sweeping its tail and spraying poison while Damasen jabbed at Tartarus, forcing the god to retreat like a cornered lion.**_

 _ **Bob stumbled away from the battle, his saber-toothed cat at his side. Percy gave them as much cover as he could-causing blood vessels in the ground to burst one after the other. Some monsters were vaporized in Styx water. Others got a Cocytus shower and collapsed, weeping hopelessly. Others were doused with liquid Lethe and stared blankly around them, no longer sure where they were or even**_ **who** _ **they were.**_

 _ **Bob limped to the Doors. Golden ichor flowed from the wounds on his arms and chest. His janitor's outfit hung in tatters. His posture was twisted and hunched, as if Tartarus's breaking the spear had broken something inside him. Despite all that, he was grinning, his silver eyes bright with satisfaction.**_

" _ **Go," he ordered. "I will hold the button."**_

"No, please don't." Jason said, tearing up again.

 _ **Percy gawked at him. "Bob, you're in no condition-"**_

" _ **Percy," Annabeth's voice threatened to break. She hated herself for letting Bob do this, but she knew it was the only way. "We have to."**_

" _ **We can't just leave them!"**_

" _ **You must, friend." Bob clapped Percy on the arm, nearly knocking him over. "I can still press a button. And I have a good cat to guard me."**_

 _ **Small Bob the saber-toothed tiger growled in agreement.**_

" _ **Besides," Bob said, "it is your destiny to return to the world. Put an end to this madness of Gaea."**_

 _ **A screaming Cyclops, sizzling from poison spray, sailed over their heads. Fifty yards away, the Maeonian drakon trampled through monsters, its feet making sickening**_ **squish squish** _ **noises as if stomping grapes. On its back, Damasen yelled insults and jabbed at the god of the pit, taunting Tartarus farther away from the Doors. Tartarus lumbered after him, his iron boots making craters in the ground.**_

 **You cannot kill me!** _ **he bellowed.**_ **I am the pit itself. You might as well try to kill the earth. Gaea and I-we are eternal. We** _ **own**_ **you, flesh and spirit!**

 _ **He brought down his massive fist, but Damasen sidestepped, impaling his javelin in the side of Tartarus's neck. Tartarus growled, apparently more annoyed than hurt. He turned his swirling vacuum face toward the giant, but Damasen got out of the way in time. A dozen monsters were sucked into the vortex and disintegrated.**_

" _ **Bob, don't!" Percy said, his eyes pleading. "He'll destroy you permanently. No coming back. No regeneration."**_

 _ **Bob shrugged. "Who knows what will be? You must go now. Tartarus is right about one thing. We cannot defeat him. We can only buy you time."**_

 _ **The Doors tried to close on Annabeth's foot.**_

" _ **Twelve minutes," said the Titan. "I can give you that."**_

"But, we don't want you to give us that, we wanted you to come back with us. Without him, there was no way we would have survived." Percy said to the book.

" _ **Percy...hold the Doors."**_

 _ **Annabeth jumped and threw her arms around the Titan's neck. She kissed his cheek, her eyes so full of tears, she couldn't see straight. Bob's stubbly face smelled of cleaning supplies-fresh lemony furniture polish and Murphy Oil wood soap.**_

" _ **Monsters are eternal," she told him, trying to keep herself from sobbing. "We will remember you and Damasen as heroes, as the**_ **best** _ **Titan and the**_ **best** _ **giant. We'll tell our children. We'll keep the story alive. Someday, you will regenerate."**_

 _ **Bob ruffled her hair. Smile line crinkled around his eyes. "That is good. Until then, my friends, tell the sun and the stars hello for me. And be strong. This may not be the last sacrifice you must make to stop Gaea."**_

 _ **He pushed her away gently. "No more time. Go."**_

 _ **Annabeth grabbed Percy's arm. She dragged him into the elevator car. She had one last glimpse of the Maeonian drakon shaking an ogre like a sock puppet, Damasen jabbing at Tartarus's legs.**_

 _ **The god of the pit pointed at the Doors of Death and yelled:**_ **Monsters, stop them!**

 _ **Small Bob the saber-toothed cat crouched and snarled, ready for action. Bob winked at Annabeth.**_

" _ **Hold the Doors closed on your side," he said. "They will resist your passage. Hold them-"**_

 _ **The panels slid shut.**_

Ares was probably crying the hardest.

"You've got to love a good warrior's death." He moaned.

"I don't think I'll ever look at the stars the same way again." Leo said through his tears.

"Wait, there's still more left in the book. I thought that that was the end. It looks like there's one more chapter. Just a little bit more of this torture." Annabeth said, whispering the last part to herself and wiping away her own tears.

* * *

 _ **AN: Why? Why did Bob and Damasen have to be left behind? Just, Why? Anyways, I'll be back later tonight with the final chapter. See you guys soon.**_


	37. The Doors Of Death

_**Disclaimer: I don't own anything, Rick Riordan does.**_

 _ **AN: This is it. After 7 months, we're actually here. I've got to say, I love all of you. When I started this, I expected, like, ten people, max, to read this, and now, I'm still surprised with how many people actually did end up reading it. I just really love all of you. There's not much else I can say, except Thank You for reading my story.**_

* * *

Annabeth started reading once everyone had calmed down a bit.

" _ **Percy, help me!" Annabeth yelped.**_

 _ **She shoved her entire body against the left door, pressing it toward the center. Percy did the same on the right. There were no handles, or anything else to hold on to. As the elevator car ascended, the Doors shook and tried to open, threatening to spill them into whatever was between life and death.**_

 _ **Annabeth's shoulders ached. The elevator's easy-listening music didn't help. If all monsters had to hear that song about liking piña coladas and getting caught in the rain, no wonder they were in the mood for carnage when they reached the mortal world.**_

" _ **We left Bob and Damasen," Percy croaked. "They'll die for us, and we just-"**_

" _ **I know," she murmured. "Gods of Olympus, Percy, I know."**_

 _ **Annabeth was almost glad for the job of keeping the Doors closed. The terror racing through her heart at least kept her from dissolving into misery. Abandoning Damasen and Bob had been the hardest thing she'd ever done.**_

 _ **For years at Camp Half-Blood, she had chafed as other campers went on quests while she stayed behind. She'd watched as others gained glory...or failed and didn't come back. Since she was seven years old, she had thought:**_ **Why don't I get to prove my skills? Why can't** _ **I**_ **lead a quest?**

 _ **Now she realized that the hardest test for a child of Athena wasn't leading a quest or facing death in combat. It was making the strategic decision to step back, to let someone else take the brunt of the danger-especially when that person was your friend. She had to face the fact that she couldn't protect everyone she loved. She couldn't solve every problem.**_

 _ **She hated it, but she didn't have time for self-pity. She blinked away her tears.**_

" _ **Percy, the Doors," she warned.**_

 _ **The panels had started to slide apart, letting in a whiff of...ozone? Sulfur?**_

 _ **Percy pushed on his side furiously and the crack closed. His eyes blazed with anger. She hoped wasn't mad at her, but if he was, she couldn't blame him. If it keeps him going, she thought, then let him be angry.**_

" _ **I will kill Gaea," he muttered. "I will tear her apart with my bare hands."**_

 _ **Annabeth nodded, but she was thinking about Tartarus's boast. He could not be killed. Neither could Gaea. Against such power, even Titans and giants were hopelessly outmatched. Demigods stood no chance.**_

 _ **She also remembered Bob's warning:**_ **This may not be the last sacrifice you must make to stop Gaea.**

 _ **She felt that truth deep in her bones.**_

" _ **Twelve minutes," she murmured. "Just twelve minutes."**_

 _ **She prayed to Athena that Bob could hold the UP button that long. She prayed for strength and wisdom. She wondered what they would find once they reached the top of this elevator ride. If their friends weren't there, controlling the other side…**_

" _ **We can do this," Percy said. "We**_ **have** _ **to."**_

" _ **Yeah," Annabeth said. "Yeah, we do."**_

 _ **They held the Doors shut as the elevator shuddered and the music played, while somewhere below them, a Titan and a giant sacrificed their lives for their escape.**_

"And, that is the end of the book," Annabeth said closing the book. "Now you guys know everything we went through down there."

"And, you guys know better than we do, what happened next." Percy said to the rest of the demigods.

"Yeah, I hit that button with my amazing skills with a screwdriver." Leo said.

"I really don't know what to say, now that it's all over." Calypso said.

"I know that you guys didn't really have much of a choice and that it must have been terrible for you three, having to relive all of that, just now. So, thank you, for letting us know what happened." Poseidon said.

"It really was very eye-opening, seeing the things that you demigods go through on a regular basis. How much you all have to deal with threats and danger and monsters and all." Hermes said.

"He's right, none of us ever really thought about it, we would just send you on quests when we needed it, but we didn't exactly think about how much danger there really was in your lives." Demeter added.

"I think that we still need to talk about how Poseidon gave his son more power than he was supposed to." Zeus said, dramatically.

"Do you really think that after finding out that he would be the subject of two major prophecies, the likes of which we haven't seen in thousands of years, and after knowing some of the things Percy would go through, I was just going to sit back and not do anything I could to help him survive the terrible life that the Fates had laid out for him? Because if you do, you are sadly mistaken, and I _will_ physically fist fight you." Poseidon said, ending his rant by teasing his younger brother.

"Yeah, and I'll help, you big drama queen." Hades said, defending one of the first demigods in a long time to give him some respect.

After that, everybody got up and decided to stretch. I mean, they had been sitting down for a very long time, so.

Poseidon made his way over to Percy and Annabeth, who were talking to each other, away from everyone else.

"Thank you, so much, dad, for everything." Percy said.

"I'm glad that you've managed to make it this far and done so much, even with everything the Fates have thrown at you and Annabeth. I'm so proud of you both. Without you, Annabeth, I don't know how far Percy would have made it. I can never thank you enough." Poseidon said, hugging them both. He left them alone a little bit after that.

The demigods decided that it was time to go back to their unfrozen-in-time lives, so they started to head to the doors, but before they could get too far, they were stopped by another one of the gods, or in this case, goddesses.

"You were the one to get us gods to change our ways for the first time in millenia, Perseus Jackson. You may just end up being the reason we change how we see and treat you all. Have a good life, and while now I doubt that you would, if you ever do _anything_ to hurt my daughter… Let's just say that I would be careful, if I were you." Athena said, ending her threat with a small smile.

"Mother!" Annbeth groaned, blushing.

"Anyways, I think that it's time for us to leave and get back to our regular lives, we'll come and visit once in a while, if you want." Percy said.

But, when the demigods got to the throne room doors, they found that they were unable to open them.

They were just about to panic, when a bright light began shining above them all, and a single piece of paper floated down from above.

* * *

 _ **AN: And that officially marks the end of the "Why Did It Have To Be Us?" I wasn't really sure what else to do with the ending, so I hope you guys like it. You know what, just for old times, I'm gonna have one last recommendation for you guys. I don't remember if I've already recommended this or not, but it's called**_ **Wise Girl's Seaweed Brain by Drake Hayward.** _ **Happy Holidays and as always, I'll see you guys.**_


End file.
